Melissa Hill Graphic Design
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MAPPING
SOCIAL
COHESION

Visual appeal for serious data

For more than a decade, the Scanlon Foundation and Scanlon Foundation Research Institute have been conducting and leading research on social cohesion in Australia via the Mapping Social Cohesion research series. This consists of detailed surveys on social cohesion, immigration and population issues, with the objective of understanding the social impact of Australia’s increasingly diverse immigration program. The findings are then shared via a detailed report, website, and launch event, all of which occur annually.

The Scanlon Foundation is Think HQ’s oldest client and each year, we work together not only to design the communications around this significant piece of research, but to also organise the launch event.

The look and feel of each year’s event is extrapolated from the cover design of the report. It is important for each year to be easily distinguishable from the previous ones and for the design to feel contemporary to reflect the up-to-date nature of the content inside.

I provided the client with several design concepts to choose from, which all touched on themes of data, cohesion, and society. With each year that we work on this project, it becomes more challenging to come up with new, fresh ways to represent the same themes, but it does result in a collection of very aesthetically pleasing concepts.

Mapping Social Cohesion Direction 1
Direction 1 Variations: Using a mesh as a metaphor for cohesion, a society with many connections and interlaced parts that form a whole.
Mapping Social Cohesion Direction 2
Direction 2 Variations 1: Here we use weaving to talk about cohesion, as in the "fabric of society". Here we have quite literal illustrations of weaving.
Mapping Social Cohesion Direction 2
Direction 2 Variations 2: This is a more abstract execution of the idea of weaving. The use of gradients in such small repeating blocks, gives the feeling of something technical and data-related, whilst the gradients themselves are visually striking and grab attention.
Mapping Social Cohesion Direction 2
Direction 2 Variations 3 Slightly abstract executions of the idea of weaving, with these options particularly lending themselves to being able to be rearranged in different configurations to suit different applications
Mapping Social Cohesion Direction 3
Direction 3 Variations 1 In this direction, we refer to the theme of cohesion through a more traditional motif of connecting lines and dots. These connectors are given a more organic look and feel, almost becoming amorphous shapes as they join together.
Mapping Social Cohesion Direction 3
Direction 3 Variations 2 These designs use the idea of connectors in a more conservative way, keeping it fresh and contemporary through the clean layout and generous use of space.
Mapping Social Cohesion Direction 4
Direction 4 Variations 1 This direction uses network style connections to talk about cohesion. These designs use very rigid network connections to form patterns that feel stable and formal.
Mapping Social Cohesion Direction 4
Direction 4 Variations 2 These designs play with the idea of a network, but in a less rigid sense, creating a more energetic design.