Built for Norway: designing a flexible government identity for KiN

For Kunstsentrene i Norge (KiN), a government-backed network spanning Norway’s regional art centres, we designed a bold, flexible identity system that is already in place on their website and in wide-ranging promotion for KiN’s artist grant programme.

An identity for a Norwegian icon

To talk about our latest project I first need to describe our client, an organisation that isn’t easily pigeonholed. Kunstsentrene i Norge, or simply KiN, is the government body that works to co-ordinate and promote Norway’s nationwide network of regional art centres. In addition to representing its members to authorities and organisations, KiN also administers the annual grant scheme for individual artists, Regionale utstillingsmidler (regional exhibition grants).

It’s important to cover that detail because our work has involved all of it from the very beginning but it’s also interesting to have a little background. KiN was founded from a 1970s artist-led movement and as a government body finds its role and personality across advocacy and administration, activism and institution.

This goes some way to explaining our branding design work for KiN, a piece of design that is at once uncompromising and practical. We started work on the project in the spring, with a set of hard deadlines to meet. Not only did the new logo need to be in place, but branding, advertising and promotion for the grants had to be submitted. This required not only a logo but a design scheme that would provide structure and clarity while aligning with KiN’s creative ethos.

We worked directly with Karen Rosness, KiN’s Project Manager and Communications Advisor, and we recently had a chat about the new branding ahead of a busy autumn with the grant application deadline for Regionale utstillingsmidler looming.

KiN serves both centres across Norway and individual artists applying for bursaries. How did you think about designing for such different audiences at once?

The design part is luckily not our job, so this question I feel is more for the designers. I think that’s why we used Richard Chapman Studio, to help us solve this problem of staying true to ourselves and at the same time make it possible for all our audiences to relate to how we as an organisation present ourselves.

Is there one specific design decision you’d point to as the moment the identity clicked, for you?

In the team’s second presentation I felt they had really listened to our first comments and understood where we wanted to go. So after choosing the first route and developing that idea further in discussion with the team here and their designers, I felt we were on the right path.

What’s something in the new identity you now couldn’t imagine the brand without?

We live in such a visual world where design, form and colour, really affects how an audience perceives and identifies with the organisation. So the clean aesthetics of our new profile, especially the calming, but bold colours, is something I hope will stay with us for a very long time.

Collateral for the grant (Regionale utstillingsmidler) has to be taken seriously by applicants but also feel true to the new identity. How did you balance credibility with personality there?

That is often what the discussion is about, regarding good design for us. For the new visual profile the balance lies in the way we let the design show personality, but what we communicate, the actual information, has to be clear and concise. So design can catch the eye and be intriguing, but what is being communicated is clear and leaves little room for questions. That balance is a great art to master.

If another government body called you asking whether to rebrand, what would you tell them?

I would say that it could be a good idea to talk to designers that have fresh perspectives on your organisation and profile. It could be challenging along the way, but in the process you get something that is worth it: you get to test how well your organisation is currently communicating its purpose and how well that translates in your current design. That can be useful information when working for a new visual profile.

How would you describe working with the RCS team, and how do you feel about the outcome?

Working with Kris and Richard has been really pleasant. They make tough discussions feel less difficult and they’re friendly and always available if needed, which is perhaps a benefit of hiring a small design studio where people are passionate about what they do. In my experience, they check in — ‘are we understanding you correctly when we hear this…’ — which makes communication go smoothly. We’ll keep in touch for potential future projects.

A passion project realised

The new branding for KiN has been a creative journey. The resulting identity pays tribute to the heritage of the organisation as well as the art centres, artists and general public who will interact with it.

We’ve already implemented the new brand scheme to a pre-existing website, applying the new logo and colours, then our designs for the advertising, in print and online, for the grant programme went live over the summer, ahead of its September deadline.

Our ties with Norway, via Kris, our Design Director, who is Norwegian, mean this is a project with a really personal side to it. The completed KiN design scheme was created to be a flexible government identity, with scope for expansion in the coming years, something Karen mentions in our conversation too. Together we’ve found a new way forward for an organisation with decades of heritage behind it, while designing a memorable piece of branding that acts as a meeting point for anyone with a passion for the arts.

The design story for a flexible government identity

Our work at Richard Chapman Studio spans corporate and government organisations across the UK, Europe and the Middle East. We’re always interested in a challenge, especially creating custom-designed brand identity systems.

To work with us, get in touch. Call +44 20 7351 4083 or email us directly.

Find out more

Our portfolio page for the KiN project

More of our work in brand, icon and logo design