The Washington Buddhist Vihara is a wonderful Sri Lankan monastery serving the DC metropolitan area. For this case study, I revamped their website and brought it into the 21st century.
When building this composition, I wanted the site to be unique by reframing from using the usual design cliches of religious sites. In other words, I avoided displaying large images of the Buddha sitting in the middle of the screen. Instead, I included other iconic symbols that invoke strong references to Buddhism.
When designing the logo, I used the eight prong wheel (Dharmacakra), which represents the noble eightfold path of Buddhism. Further, I included a beautiful photograph of a lotus blossom (water lilly) that I discovered when research for a banner image. The lotus blossom is an important symbol in Buddhism as it represents the complete purification of the body, speech and mind. Once blossomed, a white lotus symbolizes full enlightenment.
