Anusha Farooqui

NORTH - Website Illustrations

Turning NORTH’s website into a scroll-based story blending modern illustration with Himachali roots

Context

NORTH wanted its website to feel more than informational — it needed to reflect the experience of being at the campus: human, slow, and deeply tied to Himalayan culture. My role was to design a series of illustrations that would bring this story to life as an interactive journey.

Design Arcade is my thesis project — an interactive platform where students and young professionals practice design principles through play. This case study focuses on how I built a brand identity that bridges the excitement of arcade culture with the credibility of design education.

Deliverables: Logo System, Color Palette, Typography, Mockups, Brand Guidelines

Scope

Illustration

Narrative Design

Web Experience

Cultural Research

Timeline

2 Weeks

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Challenge

Context

The existing site lacked narrative and emotional depth. The challenge was to design visuals that translated local culture into a modern digital language, while also creating a clear scroll-based flow that visitors could follow across devices.

Deliverables: Logo System, Color Palette, Typography, Mockups, Brand Guidelines

Challenge

Build a visual identity for Design Arcade that instantly communicates both learning and play. It had to feel bold enough to attract young designers, but structured enough to be taken seriously in an educational context.

Process

Narrative Mapping - Structured the journey as a story: starting in the clouds, zooming into the dhajji house, then moving through farming, the office, and finally the guest stay.

Cultural Research - Studied Kangra, Basohli, and Thangka painting traditions to weave authentic motifs into simplified digital forms.

Style Development - Explored color palettes and forms, refining a geometric yet warm style that worked in both desktop and mobile flows.

Screen Flow Design - Created a storyboard for each scene and prototyped the pacing, ensuring the scroll transitions felt natural.

Art Direction - Balanced detail and simplicity — enough to communicate culture and craft, but minimal enough for digital performance.

Solution

The final outcome was a set of cohesive illustrations designed as a scroll-based narrative. Visitors begin above the clouds, then move through scenes of craftsmanship, permaculture, collaboration, and hospitality — each one revealing a pillar of NORTH’s identity in a visual, approachable way.

Outcome

The illustrations transformed the website into a living story instead of a static page. Visitors now experience NORTH’s philosophy emotionally, remembering the visuals as part of the brand. For me, the project reinforced how illustration can bridge cultural authenticity with modern digital storytelling.