Potion — Visual identity and imagery
Designing a distinctive brand system for a DeFi protocol.
Industry
Crypto
Client
PotionLabs
Year
2020
Project overview
Potion is a DeFi protocol focused on risk management and options-based financial strategies.
This project explores the design of a new visual identity, aimed at translating complex financial concepts into a distinctive and cohesive brand system.
The work focuses on building a recognizable visual language that bridges product, communication, and onchain culture.
The Challenge
Abstract financial concepts
Risk, options, and pricing models are difficult to represent visually
Low emotional engagement
DeFi products often feel technical and inaccessible
Need for differentiation
Standing out in a saturated Web3 landscape
Consistency across touchpoints
Aligning brand, product, and communication
Naming
The name Potion originates from the idea of transforming traditional financial mechanisms into something more accessible and beneficial within the DeFi ecosystem. It reflects the protocol’s core function—creating insurance (put options) on digital assets—through a metaphor that feels intuitive and approachable.
This concept helped shape both the visual identity and the communication tone, using analogies to simplify complex financial ideas.
Logo
The Potion logo is designed to be simple, recognizable, and meaningful.
It combines elements of fantasy and Web3, reinforcing the idea of transformation and protection.
The system is built on a modular grid, ensuring consistency in proportions and alignment between symbol and logotype.
Clear spacing and structural rules guarantee legibility across different contexts.
Color system
The color palette plays a key role in defining the brand’s personality.
It combines deep tones with vibrant accents to create a balance between:
Technical depth
Playfulness and accessibility
Gradients are used as a primary expressive element, helping to create atmosphere and visual consistency across touchpoints.
Visual language
The identity is built around abstract compositions, soft textures, and gradient-based visuals.
These elements evoke concepts such as:
uncertainty
transformation
financial dynamics
without relying on literal representations.
This approach allows the brand to communicate complex ideas in a more intuitive and engaging way.
Patterns
Patterns are derived from the logo and core visual elements, creating a consistent and flexible system.
They are designed to work across light and dark environments, maintaining recognizability while adapting to different contexts.
These patterns reinforce the brand identity and help create a cohesive visual experience across channels.
Typography
The typographic system balances clarity and personality:
Poppins for UI and general communication
EB Garamond for long-form and editorial content
A custom uppercase font was also developed, inspired by bonding curves—the core concept behind the protocol—adding a distinctive and recognizable layer to the brand.
Iconography & Illustration
Iconography and illustrations play a central role in defining the brand tone.
They introduce a sense of playfulness and reinforce the idea of a “fantastical” DeFi world.
Blur, gradients, and soft shapes are used to create a cohesive visual language across product and communication.
System in Use
The identity is designed as a flexible system that can scale across:
Product interfaces
Marketing materials
Brand assets
Web experiences
ensuring consistency while allowing variation across different use cases.
Closing
Potion explores how abstract financial systems can be translated into a distinctive and expressive visual language. By building a flexible and scalable design system, the project connects complex DeFi concepts with a more accessible and engaging brand experience.
