Shevchenko National Prize
The Shevchenko National Prize is the main cultural award in Ukraine. Since 1961, the prize has been awarded annually to the best works of contemporary culture in the fields of literature, journalism, cinema, theatre and visual arts.
Through the distancing from the Soviet legacy, the desire arose to reshape the award's appearance that seemed outdated today. Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine, responsible for country's cultural development and history preservation hired us together with the ISD Group to create a brand strategy, brand identity, positioning and graphic design for this award. We had to make rebranding for the Shevchenko National Prize in order to attract more public attention to it, make it desirable and prestigious.
Through the distancing from the Soviet legacy, the desire arose to reshape the award's appearance that seemed outdated today. Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine, responsible for country's cultural development and history preservation hired us together with the ISD Group to create a brand strategy, brand identity, positioning and graphic design for this award. We had to make rebranding for the Shevchenko National Prize in order to attract more public attention to it, make it desirable and prestigious.
The Prize means to recognize
something truly Ukrainian that fascinates, impresses and makes proud.
Existing since the 60-s and granted annually, the award remained known and respected in the very narrow swath of society. General public had no idea of its importance and even existence. The challenge here was to make it popular. To let every Ukrainian citizen know and be proud of nowadays heroes of culture. To make people consume the best local cultural product.
Three elements were essential to the brand relaunch: first, a return to the significance of the cultural figure Shevchenko; second, the integration of an architectural style typical of Ukraine, the so-called Ukrainian Baroque; and third, an emphasis on the national anchoring of the prize through the integration of the Ukrainian national coat of arms.
Three elements were essential to the brand relaunch: first, a return to the significance of the cultural figure Shevchenko; second, the integration of an architectural style typical of Ukraine, the so-called Ukrainian Baroque; and third, an emphasis on the national anchoring of the prize through the integration of the Ukrainian national coat of arms.
Everything about Shevchenko
has finally got brand new,
expansive way of expression.
The basis for the new logo is formed by the Cyrillic initial letters of the Shevchenko Prize (Ševčenko Premija), Ш (Š) and П (P), the trident from the coat of arms, as well as arches rotated by 180 degrees, which stand for the Ukrainian Baroque. The result is a reduced but dynamic brand identity that conveys both the spirit of Shevchenko and the idea of national identity without competing with the works of the award-winning artists.
Another core element of the brand identity is a multicolored ribbon-like graphic element that is used in ever-changing color variations. It aims to symbolize precisely the energy of Shevchenko, for which his cultural heirs are also honored today. This ribbon functions as an extremely flexible element within the brand design, as it can be used to create ever new dynamic shapes and color constellations that work equally well in moving images, in print media or even as an entrance ribbon to the awards ceremony.
The visual language uses the technique of eclecticism: visual material is taken from the works of the award winning artists and overlaid with forms that do not show the artworks in their entirety, but only fleetingly reveal them. The dynamic ribbon or band winds over and seemingly through the artworks, linking everything together – the different elements and media, the various cultural spaces, past and present.
Another core element of the brand identity is a multicolored ribbon-like graphic element that is used in ever-changing color variations. It aims to symbolize precisely the energy of Shevchenko, for which his cultural heirs are also honored today. This ribbon functions as an extremely flexible element within the brand design, as it can be used to create ever new dynamic shapes and color constellations that work equally well in moving images, in print media or even as an entrance ribbon to the awards ceremony.
The visual language uses the technique of eclecticism: visual material is taken from the works of the award winning artists and overlaid with forms that do not show the artworks in their entirety, but only fleetingly reveal them. The dynamic ribbon or band winds over and seemingly through the artworks, linking everything together – the different elements and media, the various cultural spaces, past and present.
It's the proof that Shevchenko Prize
looks modern not only for
Ukraine but also for the World.
We managed to make identity noticeable, bright and loud. It attracts attention to the Prize winners and communicates their art to the wide audience using the power of feelings and emotions. We are very proud that the Shevchenko National Prize got two awards from the world's largest design competition Red Dot Award: we won Brands / Culture Institutions and Communication Design / Brand Design & Identity Relaunch.
It's the first time in the history of competition that the culture institution gets awarded in the category Brands and very first project in Ukraine that gets awarded in this category. The Red Dot Award recognizes the best brands and creative works of every year and winning it is important not only for us as an Agency but also for Ukraine, because it gives another chance to put the spotlight on Ukrainian culture.
It's the first time in the history of competition that the culture institution gets awarded in the category Brands and very first project in Ukraine that gets awarded in this category. The Red Dot Award recognizes the best brands and creative works of every year and winning it is important not only for us as an Agency but also for Ukraine, because it gives another chance to put the spotlight on Ukrainian culture.
