Chex Art Direction, Design and Illustration
In 2006, I had the opportunity to work on a major redesign for Chex, followed closely by an in-and-out holiday package featuring my illustration work on the final design.
I wanted to create an unusual product depiction for Chex--a spoon only shot thrusting at the viewer that allows an emphasis on the product details that make Chex unique. The previous design also had a lot of busy shapes and badges that I got rid of. The Chex type itself is inspired by the angled Chex logo that was used on a late 70s/early 80s design.
General Mills wanted Holiday packaging that would be beautiful enough to have out on the cupboard throughout the holidays; they called it the "Kleenex" strategy. The package would also need to sell the idea of buying all three kinds to make Chex Party MIx.
Some of our initial concepts involved foil stamps, holographic, or unique dies. Due to costs, a simpler package was in order. My concept: "Mix & Share," a series of interconnecting illustrations of Holiday Party People mingling and sharing Chex Party Mix. They could also be put together in random order to make unusual mixed up faces. The design was also extended to Cinnamon and Chocolate Chex, and the series got reused every Holiday Season for several years. Later versions feature one character per box, not split in half.
My original pencil sketch of the Mix & Share concept.