CSM Shifts

Since 2018, Boyle&Perks has been working with Central Saint Martins to create a visual language for the College. Designed to fit within the parameters of the existing branding for UAL, the resulting scheme uses typography, a colour palette and visual system to bring both cohesion but also the flexibility to represent the diverse creative community within the College walls.

A few weeks ago I received the below item in the post...

What a wonderful surprise! Enclosed are a couple of posters produced to demonstrate the new visual language, one in red

...and one in black

The posters are A2 (420x594mm) size and are simply, but beautifully, hot foil blocked on our Colorset Lemon 120gsm. They really do look amazing.

The following article explains about the development of the new visual language...

“The last thing we wanted to do was create another typeface,” confesses Elaine Perks, “then we went full circle because we came to the realisation that it was the only way to create something distinct within the constraints of the overarching UAL branding. It was the opportunity to create something that is anarchic, unpredictable and characterful within that system.” To achieve this unpredictability, the designers alighted on randomised typefaces that shift so the same word appears differently each time it’s written out. Colophon Foundry had just completed a randomised project so Boyle&Perks challenged them to create a typeface that could encompass Central Saint Martins’ past, present and future all at once. “They wanted a design that would be dynamic, changing every time you used it, but to celebrate these pillars of Central Saint Martins: the past (the incredibly rich heritage and history), the present (the students there now) and the future (which is obviously very ambiguous). That’s what we thought was really challenging, these three moments that are quantifiable, in some sense, but open to interpretation,” says Edd Harrington of Colophon Foundry.

You can read more about the project here:
https://www.arts.ac.uk/colleges/central-saint-martins/stories/changing-typeface

The hot foiling was done by Dorset based printer, Dayfold and below is an image showing the magnesium hot foil blocking die...

...and for interest, you can see the way the new visual identity is being utilised in the picture below:

My grateful thanks to Bill and Elaine for sending me the the wonderful hot foiled posters and it's great to see the fulfillment of a project which has taken well over a year to complete and which has received universal approval in the design world with DesignWeek describing the identity as “boisterous, anarchic and unpredictable”

https://www.arts.ac.uk/colleges/central-saint-martins
http://boyleperks.com/
https://www.colophon-foundry.org/
https://www.dayfold.com/

Posted by Justin Hobson 11.11.2019