Results of the Stage 1 of the Competition for the WGM’s Visual Identification

Three Polish graphic design studios, one from Lithuania, one from the Czech Republic, and an Italian graphic artist who is competing individually, made their way to the finals of the for the Warsaw Ghetto Museum’s visual identification competition. The finalists have one month to implement the competition order. The jury meeting will take place on 20 November

The competition, organised by the Warsaw Ghetto Museum and the Association of Applied Graphic Designers (STGU), has received 216 entries from around the world, including the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Portugal, Ireland, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Israel, as well as Iran, Lebanon, Australia, Brazil, and India.

In the first stage, a jury comprising STGU experts and Warsaw Ghetto Museum employees took a closer look at the achievements of the participants in the competition. The presented works were at the highest level. The members of the jury paid special attention to identification projects for cultural institutions, their form and implementation method. Six submissions were qualified to Stage 2 – three from Poland and three from abroad.

The Lithuanian DADADA studio was founded in 2006. It specialises in brand building and visual identity design. Its achievements also include arrangement of an exhibition for the Lithuanian Sea Museum in Klaipeda.

Little Greta studio was founded in 2005 in the Czech Republic. Today it is an international agency with their headquarters located in London and Prague. Its achievements include projects for the Museum of Czech Literature and works for an exhibition devoted to the Czech industrialist and visionary Tomáš Baťa.

Francesco Ciampa – freelancer on the graphics market, residing in Rome. He has designed brand visualisations, and he is also the author of illustrations that comment on the surrounding reality. He highlights that he wishes the topics he covers today to be a carrier of history for the future generations.

The Polish studio The Codeine was founded in 2013 by designer Grzegorz Łotysz and programmers Szymon Karpiński and Karol Kasprzak. The studio has gained recognition on the international market owing to implementations in blockchain technology. The studio has, among others an award in the Polish Graphic Design Awards 2019 to its credit.

The Futu design and marketing agency has been operating for the last 15 years. It responds to, among others for such projects as the Niepodległa (Independent) Logo, VIS of the Polish History Museum and the Polish Army Museum. Futu builds strategies, designs brands, builds their stories and communication.

Redkroft studio has been dealing with the creation of branding and visual identification since 2004. As many as five projects of this group won in the Design for Business 2012 competition. Recently they have created, among others the identification for the Museum of Cinematography in Lodz.

The final works will be assessed by the jury of the competition in the following composition: Małgorzata Naimska – Deputy Director of the Culture Office of the Warsaw Municipal Office, Barbara Schabowska – Director of the Adam Mickiewicz Institute, Israeli artist and designer Philippe Boulakia from the Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design in Jerusalem, Prof. Sławomir Kosmynka from the Academy of Fine Arts in Lodz, and Albert Stankowski – Director of the Warsaw Ghetto Museum.

In Stage 2, selected studios/designers will be asked to prepare a logo and additional materials. Based on them, identification for the Warsaw Ghetto Museum Based on these, identification will be chosen. The meeting of the jury is scheduled for 20 November. The results should be made public at the beginning of December at the latest – they will be presented during a press conference. In the spring of 2020, all final works will be presented at an outdoor exhibition prepared by the competition organisers.

Miłka Skalska

Spokeswoman of the Warsaw Ghetto Museum

Photo: collage of the selected studios/designers` logotypes by Miłka Skalska (WGM)

Tanslated by: Michał Nowakowski (LIDEX)