ERIE FIRE DEPARTMENT COLORING BOOK
Leading A Collaborative Project
The objective of this project was to create an engaging children’s coloring book featuring Horus, the Erie Fire Department’s ATF dog, to promote fire safety education throughout the Erie area.
The Erie Fire Department selected my character design for Horus from a class of 20 student designers. From there, I developed Horus’s visual identity, including his poses, accessories, and overall style, and established the visual direction for the coloring book.
In addition to designing the book and its supporting assets in Adobe Illustrator and InDesign, I managed the project’s asset library, organizing and maintaining the artwork and files produced throughout the project. I also coordinated with each of the 20 students as they developed individual page backgrounds, helping maintain visual consistency across the final book.
Design Choices
I wanted Horus to be recognizable and accurate to his real-life appearance while remaining simple, approachable, and fun for children to color. The character also needed to remain visually consistent across a variety of poses and illustrations throughout the book. It was also important to me that there was enough variety in his poses: while we were only required to create 3 poses for the initial Horus selection process, I created 6, and then later created 4 more poses after my design was chosen.
Process
I began by referencing photographs of Horus to identify his defining features, proportions, and overall silhouette. I then simplified and exaggerated select features, such as his eyes and friendly expression, to give him a more playful, cartoon-like appearance while maintaining his recognizable personality.
The initial sketches were done in Procreate, which I then refined in Adobe Illustrator. Each student in my class designed a page which was ultimately imported into Adobe Indesign for the final book creation.
After my Horus design was selected, I developed a set of character poses, accessories, and visual guidelines to establish a consistent look for the book. I then created the core assets and layout for the coloring book using Adobe Illustrator and InDesign.
I collaborated with 20 students in my Computer Illustration class, each contributing a background illustration for an individual page. I worked with students throughout the process to review their artwork, provide feedback, and ensure that their illustrations worked cohesively with the Horus character and the overall design of the book.
To keep the project organized, I managed the shared asset library and maintained the collection of character artwork, illustrations, and supporting files throughout production. This helped streamline collaboration and ensure that the final assets remained consistent and accessible as the book came together.
- I personally created the asset library, front cover, and an interior uncolored page.
- The completed coloring book was distributed to schools throughout the Erie area, giving children an engaging and approachable way to learn about fire safety through illustration and activity.
