Fontys Academy of Arts | New Brand Identity
A new visual identity that suits the institute, the staff, students, teachers, and their identity.
About the Case
In 2021, Fontys adopted a monolithic brand strategy: one name, one logo, one tagline. However, various studies (and also intuitively) showed that this approach did not sufficiently resonate with the target audience of Fontys Academy of the Arts. Therefore, we developed a new visual identity that fits the institute, the staff, students, teachers, and their identity.
The Request from Fontys Academy of the Arts:
Music, performance arts, visual arts: you can find it all at Fontys Academy of the Arts. To distinguish this from the regular Fontys programs, we received the request to develop an ‘art identity’ that fits the institute and stands out in the national and international competitive field. The requirements:
- The identity of an art school revolves around artistic vision, design, performance, expression, and uniqueness. Unlike broad-based universities
- We make the uniqueness of Fontys Academy of the Arts visible and tangible compared to other creative programs
- A unique visual identity is relevant and gives us a special position within Fontys.
Our Approach
Fontys Academy of the Arts works with several brand pillars, which we also focused on in the new identity:
- Mastery: students experience the freedom to develop and grow
- Interdisciplinary: collaborations within the program are encouraged
- Purpose: you create art for yourself and for the world of tomorrow
With these brand pillars in mind, we started working on the new branding. This led us to the direction ‘The Shapers’:
Art is not ‘just creating something.’ Behind that one work, dance performance, or piece of music, there’s so much more. Hours of hard work, days of struggle, and years of development. Art is not ‘just doing something.’ Art is a craft. A way of working. It’s what gets us out of bed every day. Together, we design, build, and shape. We create art and culture, right here at our school. We have ambitions, but we know that to achieve them, we just have to get to work. Not too vague, but just together, working hard, creating, sketching, producing, and playing. From different disciplines, cultures, and fields, we bring groundbreaking ideas to life every day. We don’t just dream, we create. We learn a craft, dive into society, and explore our own artistic talents. Because we are the creatives, the explosive, the extraordinary, and the wondrous. We are the storytellers, the translators, the experiencers, and the movers. Sometimes the troublemakers, the deceivers, and occasionally the encouragers. We are the tear-jerkers, the laugh-makers, the warmers, and the embracers. We are the shapers.
Result
The new identity is a distinctive, colorful, and clear style that captures the identity of the school and the students. By ‘morphing’ shapes to create new forms, we literally translate the concept of ‘The Shapers’ into a visual style. This style can also be applied in various expressions and visual tools. Additionally, by using photography of students ‘in the moment’ of creating, we put the student at the center and emphasize the creative process.
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