I knew we had another Friday the 13th coming up and this time I wanted something really memorable. Something that would be the complete opposite of what you'd expect to see on such an ominous day. Then I came upon Ethan Proulx's Ducks concept and I couldn't believe my luck. I don't have any words for this thing, so maybe you guys will. Comment away.
Ethan Proulx
I'm launching a new concept series today from artist Andrew Bourne. He asked if I'd feature his rebranding series, tackling the entire NHL. I told him I'm game so you'll start seeing his work here every few days, starting with the Anaheim Ducks.
Now, what Andrew's doing doesn't exactly fall under the category of "rebranding" in my book. He's changing colors and redesigning jerseys and so forth. Instead, I'm calling his series "Re-Bourne." Hope you get a kick out of it, as I have. Below and in subsequent posts you'll find Andrew's explanation of his work.
Although the orange streak in the current jersey format connects Anaheim geographically (Orange County), I'm not a fan. The orange is a bit too distracting in the Black, Gold and White color palette. It seems to really jump out and take all of your eye's attention. So, I decided to mute the colors a bit and return to a near replication of the Jade & Eggplant. The green is a bit darker than the original, less teal and more 'pond scum' green. The eggplant was tweaked to a more full purple which worked well with the black.
You don't see a lot of asymmetrical jerseys in the NHL, or AHL... or KHL for that matter. Why? Because they usually don't work. I can't say that my idea will work, but I believe that it could work. In the current jersey, Anaheim has a few curved stripes from left to right across the bottom. I liked that idea but I didn't like how it just stops on the left edge of the jersey, leaving a strange black area. The sleeves in the third jersey have a simple striping similar to the bottom, except one side has purple while the other has green. It gives the alternate sweater a sense of asymmetry without actual asymmetry. Make sense? Probably not...
Andrew Bourne
This week, Ross Taylor continues his brand-blending series by merging the new Ducks with the old Mighty Ducks — and throwing in a little green for good measure. I love the colors but I'm not sure the webbed D and the duck mask work all that well together.
Ross Taylor
California Week rolls on with another shot of green in Anaheim. Kevin Dion proposes a rather dark jersey that swaps the Ducks' orange for a rarer hue. Of course that classic Disney logo is back on the front. What do you think of the overall feel of this one?
Kevin Dion
In concept designing efforts, we often talk about the difficulty of finding a unique color scheme for a given team. I think Tyler Meyer has found the perfect one for the Ducks in green and orange. It has three things going for it in the color department alone: it's brighter, has no black, and lots of green! I even like the giant stripes on this jersey. Between this and the Kings concept I posted on Monday, the Pacific Division could look pretty amazing if Icethetics concept artists had their way.
Chris
As you may have read the comments, Tyler was pretty thrilled to see some of the feedback on his concept. So he took some of your ideas into consideration and provided this home and road set for your enjoyment. Personally, I think the old duck mask logo works better with this look and color palette, but really it's fantastic either way.
Tyler Meyer
Colin May proposes mixing the old and new for the Anaheim Ducks. Back in the late '90s, the Mighty Ducks, as they were known, used a sweater design quite similar to these. Think they looked better in jade and eggplant or the more modern orange and black? What do you think of the old logo coming back? (And before you comment on the misspelling of Selanne... we know.)
Chris
It's not uncommon for concept posts to yield lots of suggestions from readers for revisions. Every now and then, the artist will take a few cues from their critics and I'm always more than happy to add their revised work to the original post. Here's what Colin had to say:
Hey everyone, thanks for your compliments and feedback.
I made [the original] concept a long while ago. I have since updated it to feature the D logo on the chest. I also made up a Wild Wing alternate to go with these, complete with the duck mask shoulder patch that Bryan Wright mentioned.
To other concept artists: If your work has been featured and you'd like to submit a revision, feel free to do so.
Colin May 
