An aromatic haze
Reviewed by Thomas Barnett
The Blue Mountains of New South Wales, Australia are not technically mountains at all. They are, rather, a complex labyrinth of dissected plateaus, gorges and valleys of sandstone, formed over 50 million years ago. So far, so deceptive. Fortunately, however, the Blue Mountains are most definitely blue. When the atmospheric temperature of the region rises, a superfine mist of fragrant oil gently evaporates from the eucalyptus trees that carpet the valley, dispersing into the air. As sunlight hits this aromatic haze, the visible spectra of light scatters, propagating shorter wavelength colours more than longer ones, enveloping the ‘mountains’ in an illusory lapis gauze.
Yet despite this magical, multisensory allure and generations of popularity with tourists, there remains an under-appreciated aspect of the 3,000km2, UNESCO World Heritage designated park. While the iconic Three Sisters rock formation is world renowned, less well-known is the community of 26 villages scattered across the plateau, and the rich local culture. Which is why Blue Mountains Tourism, in conjunction with Blue Mountains City Council, approached their antipodean compatriots For The People to devise a distinctive new place-making identity for the region…
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Collections: Social Assets
I’m continuing to build out the BP&O ‘Collections’ pages to provide a better browsing experience. This will give you a decade-long overview of the brands featured on the site from 2011-present based on key assets such as colour palettes, custom type and logotypes. These are currently a work in progress.
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A little bit wrong
Reviewed by Emily Gosling
Founded by Robert Ventura and Sophie Foreman, Ventura Foreman is a design and manufacturing studio based in Woolwich, south London, which specialises in quality workwear pieces for clients like Paul Smith, Matches, and much-hyped North London ‘liberal metropolitan elite’ take on the greasy spoon, Norman’s Cafe.
Having been around for a while without a ‘brand’, there came a point in the company’s life that it needed a coherent visual identity, and it appointed London-based Studio Blackburn to take that on.
The brief was something of an unusual one, in that Ventura Foreman wanted an identity, but not a ‘brand’: its workwear-focused, practical roots still had to come through. Like so many brands (or in this case, not-brands) before it, Ventura Foreman wanted to prioritise and convey the idea of ‘authenticity’.
It’s an interesting one, the whole branding-but-not-branding thing; and begs the question, what’s the difference between a brand and an identity? And, for this project specifically, how do you get branding when not a brand? What are the parameters? Is this, then, just a ‘look’?
Whatever the answers to these rather philosophical musings, Studio Blackburn’s approach was to keep things very, very simple and functional…
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Now on Brand Archive:
HSBC by Harry Steiner, 1982
Brand Archive is a new research tool from the team behind BP&O. Discover a long history of corporate identity design, from the 1960s to present day. Using our custom built filter, discover individual assets from signage, to packaging to liveries, drawn from over 700 brands.
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Thank you for subscribing to the BP&O Newsletter. If you’re interested in other design-related resources and tools, also check out these from the same team:
Brand Archive – Research tool for brand designers.
LogoArchive Website – Searchable modernist logo archive & research tool.
Logo Histories – Stories behind great historical logos.
LogoArchive Shop – Vintage design books & LogoArchive Zines.