Illustration
Illustration is an eye-catching medium that tells a story in a way that photography, technical diagrams, and icons cannot. Illustrations work well across applications, like presentations, web pages, animations, and motion graphics. We use illustrations to tell conceptual, open stories and describe nuanced ideas in an authentic way.
Active, not passive.
Red Hat’s illustration style implies movement and activity. Illustrated people are realistic and dynamic, not oversimplified or static.
Intentional, not superficial
Our style is refined and thoughtfully designed to complement the complex nature of our products. They’re approachable, but not cartoonish or childlike.
Informative, not decorative.
Red Hat® illustrations are more than eye-catching. They should complement and enhance the message they’re paired with and tell a story about our technology or our customer’s business.
Open, not closed.
With diverse people and diverse thoughts, the best ideas come from everywhere. We include a broad range of people and environments that go beyond the traditional enterprise technology cliches.
Types of Illustration
Red Hat has two types of illustrations: mini-spot illustrations and spot illustrations. Mini-spot illustrations are 1-color and work well in smaller spaces. Spot illustrations use a larger color palette and represent more complex concepts or narratives.
Minispot illustrations
Spot illustrations
Mini-spot illustrations
Mini-spot illustrations convey a single concept to support a headline or copy. They are slightly more complex than icons, and they always use our 1-color red palette with a dot texture.
Mini-spot illustrations work well in smaller spaces that might be too large for, or require more detail than, an icon alone.
Mini-spot illustrations also work well in instances where colors are limited.
Use mini-spot illustrations as provided.
Do not distort, combine, add colors to, or modify existing mini-spot illustrations.
Use mini-spot illustrations at a size where all of the details are legible.
Do not use mini-spot illustrations in place of icons.
Use a mini-spot illustration as an independent element to tell a complete story.
Do not layer or combine multiple types of illustrations or icons into one visual.
Be consistent with the type of illustration you’re using in a given application.
Do not unintentionally use more than one type of illustration per application.
Spot illustrations
Spot illustrations help to convey complex ideas or stories at a larger scale than mini-spot illustrations. They use a stylized color palette, rather than a realistic one, built from our core colors and colors are added from our extended color wheel if necessary.
Core color illustrations
Illustrations that are created from our core color palette are ideal for most brand illustrations. We use colors with strong contrast to create depth and dimension.
Extended color illustrations
Illustrations that are created using our extended color wheel are ideal for bold illustrations that draw attention. They always use red as an accent, which ensures that illustrations still look like Red Hat.
Use spot illustrations as provided.
Do not distort, combine, add colors to, or modify existing spot illustrations.
Use spot illustrations at a size where all of the details are legible.
Do not use spot illustrations in place of icons.
Use a spot illustration as an independent element to tell a complete story.
Do not layer or combine multiple types of illustrations or icons into one visual.
Be consistent with the type of illustration you’re using in a given application.
Do not unintentionally use more than one type of illustration per application.
Representation in illustrations
Considering diversity, equity, and inclusion is a significant part of our process for creating illustrations. We make sure our illustrations are reviewed by others—designers, peers, and Red Hat Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion communities. To be intentional and thoughtful, we allow time to research, listen, and adjust. With our illustrations, we aim to uplift those who have been marginalized for their appearance, ability, or identity.
Our illustrations depict a diverse community by reflecting the world as it truly exists. We use photos of real people as a source for our illustrations—not our own ideas of people–to prevent unintentional biases and stereotypes.
