A Brand Identity for the
next 75 years
Through the course of 8 months we dove deep into FAAP’s past, present and will for the future of the Brand’s Visual Language.
Founded in 1947, FAAP celebrated its 75th anniversary in 2022. The moment during/post pandemic is symptomatic for traditional institutions like FAAP, whose physical spaces are the materialization of the experiences they deliver as the additional challenge to appeal to younger generations becomes bigger and bigger.
As part of the institution’s ever-pioneering and restless attitude, a strategic branding project was developed by Unbranded.today + BRBAUEN to rediscover and evolve the brand.
The challenge of the project was to shape the present and future of the brand language and prepare it for the next 75 years of a hybrid educational reality in constant evolution. Thinking about FAAP’s main value proposition; enabling each student to see and pursue their passions, thus shaping their own lenses for the world. This motivation was the inspiration to build the new language.
FAAP creates unique, hybrid connections. Be it for the unique architectural choices of the buildings that mix styles that would not work in any other institution. Or by the institution’s pioneering role in creating the first and most prestigious higher arts courses in Brazil. Later, in the 80’s and 90’s, the junction of creativity and business. The coat of arms went through a respectful redesign, after a deep heraldic research to understand the history of each element, reinforcing its unique characteristics, such as the radical asymmetry of the elements; which was unusual for coats of arms at the time, but which made perfect sense with the audacious posture of the institution throughout the years.
The inspiration for the logo comes from this same movement to create unique connections, after we understood that historically the condensed proportions of the letters were a reminder of the university’s architecture, with its elongated and imposing façade. We revived the logo joining characteristics of serif and sans serif typography; with different types of serif finish (straight and rounded) literally exploring the knowledge of the rule, to break it and in the end, create a harmonic and unique composition.
The visual identity as a whole breathes movement and visual deconstruction; keeping organization, but allowing the identity to breathe dynamically, changing its chromatic palette combination to suit the contexts of the School, College and Post-graduation; always bringing students and their personalities into the picture, besides a custom typography designed exclusively for the project, incorporating the concept of hybridism also in the typography.
Brand Identity Diagnosis
Brand Identity Redesign
Digital Design System
Motion Language
Brand Guidelines
From hosting presidents to industry giants;
FAAP’s reputation precedes itself, but the institution
knows that looking back is not enough.
For a brand with so much history it is natural that inconsistencies occur in the way it is applied graphically; especially due to so many technological advancements over the years.
The creative process aimed first to respectfully understand every element,
their meanings and the current scenario to point out ways
to evolve the brand’s language; to preserve the value built so far, and make sure it is ready for the next decades.
A deep historical audit process to uncover and clarify all visual meaning and discover potential for evolution.
From the logotype to the way FAAP architecture influences the logo, to the finest details of the heraldry’s meaning.
The anatomy of a bold, asymetrical heraldry element
The heraldic structure of the FAAP coat of arms is unique — symmetry is intentionally left aside. We sought to understand its structure to highlight its particular characteristics.
REGRAS DE HERÁLDICA.
Luís Belard da Fonseca, 1997
MHN/IPHAN\Princípios de heráldica
http://docvirt.com/docreader.net/DocReader.aspx?bib=bib_redarte&pagfis=3524
The construction of the FAAP logo
By comparing the 2 shapes, and resizing the original ‘A’ from Times New Roman to the ‘A’ from the FAAP logo, it was possible to confirm that to draw the current FAAP logo, the letters were distorted without optical and stylistic compensations.
This analysis confirms that the difference in thickness it was an unplanned event, so we can consider the refinement of the logo as a point of improvement.
A custom type family inspired by the logo’s hybridism to shape the message
Designed by Blackletra — FAAP type brings subtle memory of the logotype and expands it’s meaning to portray typographic hybridism between Sans Serif and Serif, as a relation to the dualism between Creativity & Business.
FAAP
“We are very proud here! This is the result of work that rescued the historical importance of FAAP and brought the brand into a current and digital context. Thank you for the partnership!”
Latin American Design Awards 2023
Latin American Design Awards 2023