Identyfikacja Wizualna konkursu Jeszcze Polska.
Visual Identity of the Jeszcze Polska Competition.
logo – prints – posters
The project involved creating a visual identity and promotional materials for a diploma competition for art secondary school students. The competition was organised to mark the 100th anniversary of Poland regaining independence, and it was open to works on this theme.
The organisers of the competition, and at the same time the clients, were the Institute of National Remembrance (IPN), the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, the Centre for Art Education, the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw, and the Wojciech Gerson State Art School in Warsaw.
The logo was created at the end of 2017.
The invitations, diplomas and the poster promoting the event were created in autumn 2018.
The logo design is based on the handwriting of Marshal Józef Piłsudski, which I found in his letters from the period of the struggle for Polish independence. Through its form, the logo refers to the ideas of freedom, youth and the spirit of change that swept across Polish lands in 1918–1921. Its handwritten character also emphasises the value of technical mastery in traditional craft, which plays an important role in art education at a professional secondary level. It is also a reference to humanist values, both in artistic creation and in the experience of history.
The promotional materials were set in Brygada 1918 typeface. This font family was digitised from an original typeface designed for the 10th anniversary of Poland regaining independence. A dedicated team of designers digitised it during the centenary celebrations, working from type-casting matrices found at the Book Art Museum in Łódź.
The original design was part of Poland’s rebirth after more than a century of partitions, and it expressed the need for Polish identity that was present in society after those years. The digitised version contains only minor corrections that make longer texts readable and fix key flaws in the original design; otherwise it remains faithful to the original.
As a result, the typeface forms a link between the present day and the post-partition era. It also carries the same idea that guided the identity design for the “Jeszcze Polska” competition.
In addition, Brygada 1918 was chosen as the official typeface of the Chancellery of the President of the Republic of Poland, Andrzej Duda, and placed under his patronage. It remains the typeface used in official publications by all Polish ministries. This also makes it a fitting choice, both for the character of the project and for the level of formality that comes with the seriousness and standing of the public institutions that organised the event.
As a historical typeface, it gives the project a classic look, and its form fits consistently within the overall design convention.
The competition identity consisted of a visual identity, a logo, occasional prints (invitations and diplomas for the participants), a poster, and materials for online promotion.
Diplomas for awarded participants
The award gala and the post-competition exhibition were held at the Institute of National Remembrance (IPN).
The exhibition was open to visitors at the IPN’s History Point – Janusz Kurtyka Educational Centre in Warsaw (Przystanek Historia) until 27 October 2018.
