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SYMBOL AND LOGO FOR SIRACUSA. PROJECT PLANNING. RECORDS ON SOME CASE STUDYIES OF VISUAL IDENTITY SYSTEMS FOR THE CITY IMAGE. Documentation by Aiap (Italian association for the visual communication projects) The city identity is a value to be preserved and spread at the same time. This goal implies clear communication, effective organization of the targets and guarantee of business “localization” of the local resources. The current marketing surveys and strategies show how the commercial brands are now independent from their products. They are rather pure concepts, philosophy of life, with their own ethic and aesthetic. These strategies aim at establishing a communication and a sentimental bond between the values promoted by the brand and the consumers. Today the cities need to establish a contact with the complicated universe of individuals they communicate with. In order to build a city image and communication strategy, we need to understand this new perspective. To do this we also need to know the necessary actions to describe and valorize the city. Identification, orientation, guarantee, personalization, clarity and functional capacity are necessary to apply relational communication strategies. A visual identity for Siracusa Many Italian cities applied modern strategies to select their visual identity by combining traditional heraldry and city armorial bearings with a modern program of institutional image projects. Like companies, also cities make use of standard models for the application of the identification methods, in the same way they make use of manuals to regulate the application of the image in the various communication demands. Siracusa as well started a similar program. However too often these actions have been insufficient in terms of creation of a clear relation with the people living and using the city. A city is represented not only by an administrative district, but it also includes groups of individuals or bodies that provide services (environmental services, transportation and tourism promotion). This situation requires a specific approach, in order to comply with the issue of the city image and organization. The project should introduce the city image in a larger and more articulated visual system that conforms to the “technical” and horizontal communication channels, as well as to the “experiential” and one-way channels opened by the new technologies. City identity means legal frameworks for static communication products, and it also means a “variety of identities” that are coordinated and modulated through the organization of the project. Some observations that might be useful to the project There are three types of city symbols. All of them represent and express the city with a special sign or a character, however they are radically different from each other in their strategic and communicative value. The first group includes those symbols that represent the city institutions and administration. Usually these symbols imitate the city heraldry and they are applied according to specific customs. They recall the city historical events, symbols and visual traditions. When these references are lacking, modern shapes are adapted in the heraldic symbol in a more schematic way usually inspired by companies’ logos. This type of symbol often refers to a precise codification of the heraldic convention where signs and colors are regulated by specific meanings. Their shape must recall an explicit official character and comply with identification and communication requirements (usually secondary), but most of all they must comply with official rituals (political etiquette, or representative purposes). The second group includes those symbols that concisely represent the city images in order to identify a specific function and/or service (tourist offices, promotion bodies). Therefore these symbols must aim at distinguishing the addressed activity through a specific shape and structure such to indicate the organization. They express a very important communicative necessity and introduce the city to people by addressing the service that is offered. We can call them tools for the urban promotion, but they can also express much more. A third group, which is the real object of this competition, includes symbols that represent a real brand. These are the visual and communicative symbols of a specific product that represents the city administration, as well as the tourist function or other economic strategies, and much more. All the resources are combined in order to distinguish, identify and select the city. The visual “name” becomes a real product, and the city becomes a brand, the centre of a wide marketing strategy. This brand becomes at the same time a “quality seal” for people, for promotion campaigns and for the large variety of articles and goods that can be manufactured. Some examples of city symbols The following is a selection of projects regarding logos and brands targeting the city. There are several examples, some of them are very famous (as a result of successful and well-made projects), some of them are fairly known, some others are not at all. Some brands are the result of public or private competitions, some other symbols were instead commissioned projects. They can provide useful examples and solutions to show the limits and the stages of projects that are different from each other. AMSTERDAM Amsterdam is a very interesting case given the articulated elements that characterize its image. These elements comply with the necessity to identify specific functions and describe institutions. The tourist symbol of the city identifies the tourist office functions and it is used for its institutional communication purposes. It is a functional tool that has no functions or uses for merchandising or promotional activities. There is also an official symbol of the city that comes from the city emblem and that has clear heraldic features. This symbol is protected by a copyright and it is used in the souvenir market. In 2004 Amsterdam added an interesting regional marketing campaign to these promotional symbols. After a survey in the other European cities (Barcelona, Berlin, Dublin, Rotterdam) Amsterdam decided to valorize its unique features by involving public and private institutions, so to define a strong identity. The result was a valorization of the city name, through its transformation into a multifunctional tool. “I amsterdam”, created by the innovative company Kessel&Kramer, becomes a city poster: it highlights the advantages - museums, transportations – as well as tolerance, multicultural environment, development and research, design and fashion. Particularly the slogan acknowledges the unique resources lying in its citizens. The citizens are Amsterdam. This statement makes people proud to belong to that city. The single person becomes the local communication means. This process created a meta-language that operates from the inside and the outside. ALTO ADIGE, SUD TIROL The brand Alto Adige was created due to the necessity of a strong rationalization. The company Metadesign Berlin had to deal with the large variety of brands that already existed in the public institutions. This fact generated side effects such as waste of energy, lack of coordination between the communication policies, overlapping and repetitions. The final result was a gradual impoverishment. The creation of a company for the regional marketing was the step preceding the creation of a single brand that, like an “umbrella”, could gather together other symbols and also valorized the progress in a structured way. NEW YORK Project: Milton Glaser “In order to promote its diffusion, the trade-mark at the beginning was not registered. This meant that anybody could do anything with it. In the example (on the right) someone decided to add the word “love” inside the heart, as if people could not understand its meaning otherwise. The result depends on the observer’s subjectivity, who is stimulated to find a solution to the simple rebus: “I” is a word with a full meaning, the heart is the symbol of love and “NY” are the initials of a city name: adding the word “love” just spoils the effect. This little product that was almost left unfinished, became the most famous work of mine. It has been exaggeratedly considered as the most copied object of the twentieth century. This image became part of the common vocabulary, to the point that is hard to believe that it was necessary to invent it, and that it didn’t always exist instead. It’s a mystery to me how and why this could have happened.” from: Milton Glaser. Art is work, Edizioni Leonardo Arte Today the logo is property of the Economic Development Department of the New York state, which allows its commercial and promotional use. The proceeds of the trademark licenses are assigned to the tourist promotion. Beside this logo, New York also has the “heraldic” symbol of the state/city, much less known. OSLO The image of Oslo is a prow of a Viking vessel, stylized in various ways. It is a registered trademark of the tourist office that also makes use of it. When it is used for any promotional purpose, it also has few words written under the vessel that vary according to the context (ex. Oslo Promotion). BARCELONA The symbol of Barcelona is a capital “B” shaped in a peculiar way: a round bracket is lying under the letter. The bracket can be seen as a mouth, a smile, a hull with a B-shaped sail on top, or a movement of the ocean. It is a simple choice, yet capable to offer many interpretations. The symbol also represents a structural basis, a system, an articulation. The “B” is often accompanied by a logo or few words in lower case that nicely complete the design: B is Barcelona, B is culture, B is tourism... The result is simple, but it communicates a cheerful expressivity. COPENHAGEN Project: Scandinavian Branding. The symbol of the city is the mermaid, the famous sculpture by Edvard Eriksendal. The logo is a smoother version of the famous sculpture, with round and soft edges, while the message“ Wonderful Copenhagen” is added to the drawing. The logo is used to localize tourist information and welcome centres. The image is clearly a derivation of the famous mermaid, and since the symbol is property of the artist, the users, tourist office of Copenhagen included, must have a license to be able to use it. FRANKFURT The logo of the tourist office of Frankfurt is also used for promotion leaflets and souvenirs. The logo of the city is instead used by the local administrative office, as well as in promotional material. Both of them have an appealing, modern, effective and abstract look. HELSINKI The symbol of Helsinki is an “H” written with little dots arranged in perspective manner in a colored rectangular space. Next to this rectangular space there is a blue rectangle with the logo “Helsinki” and “ all points considered” reinforcing the strength of the symbol. The clear, yet a bit cold message is maybe in line with the city stereotype. It works fine for informative and promotional material, but it works less for products and souvenirs. The symbol of the city is the logo of the administrative and mayor’s offices. This logo is the town property, and it is not used for merchandising, but only for official material. LISBON The logo of the office for the tourist promotion is used only for promotional purposes and merchandising, since it is a registered trademark. The symbol has been developed in several versions along with time, they are all cheerful and made with delicate, yet bright colors, the message that comes across is a certain freedom. The stress is on the values and spirit of the city, rather than on the features of the promotional institution. LONDRA The logo “visit London” is included in a graphic context representing the typical symbols or places of the city. This system works also thanks to the presence of these representative city symbols. The logo is property of the London Tourist Board, an independent organization with the participation of the British Ministry of Tourism. It is used for promotional purposes and there are clear restrictions for commercial use. PARIS The Eiffel Tower is the visual stereotype that is used the most to represent Paris. All the evolutions of the Tourist Office logo rotate around such symbol. In the fist logo the tower was more stylized, vaguely three-dimensional and embellished with flags (which is maybe more effective in congresses or fairs), the symbol then became an abstract sign obtained with colored clustered dots shaping the tower. The main feature of these logos that represent Paris is that they are not used for marketing purposes. There is also the emblem of the administrative district that is used mainly for institutional purposes. Many types of logos and images are available for Paris. From liberty-like messages, to the stylization of other typical icons and places of the city. All these images are thought and used for marketing and tourist purposes: stamps, t-shirt, mugs and hats. STOCKHOLM The logos of Stockholm, both for promotional and administrative purposes, are full of images and colors. They are informal and pleasant. The logos for events are largely used to promote and market the city image. The official symbol of the city (the shield of St.Erik) is used in the administration and for commercial purposes with no changes in its colors or words. VENICE Project: Mathieu Thibaut, Philippe Starck (Consultant) The logo of Venice was created after a very troubled competition organized by the municipality of Venice, the symbol was finally signed by a very famous international designer, however it does not come up to the expectations. Venice is the only city in the world that can count on a quality guarantee for its products or services. However this concept is not well represented by this symbol, which is instead quite nostalgic and decadent. Besides the cultural reference, the logo communicates an obscure image of the city, moreover its structure, the capital “V” with the head of the lion and one single wing, lacks some balance. The logo is weak, however there is a good strategy behind its launch on the market. An effective marketing and communication strategy has created a precise image and defined a plan to apply, market and start the license activity. ZURICH This symbol is property of Zurich Tourism (a no profit company), and represents the tourism in the city. The graphic of the symbol is typical Swiss, a lot of stress has been paid on abstract geometry and on visual images. These characteristics confirm the aesthetic quality of the Swiss school, but on the other hand they also give the logo a “company” dimension, since they valorize the tourist system and organization ignoring other sides of the city. Correct use of the symbol Incorrect use of the symbol BERLIN Project: Meta Design The symbol of the new, united Berlin is the stylization of the Brandenburg door. The symbol has a compact aspect, it has many drawings and is cheerful. It was created during a very articulated image and identity program (from the transportation system to specific typographic features). The contrast between positive and negative signs provides a dynamic result. What is missing instead is some emotion; the symbol recalls a company logo (the hat with this symbol on it reminds a bit of a sport and/or corporate club gadget, if compared with other hats having logos with things such bears and city heraldic symbols). Berlin Tourismus Marketing GMBH is the body in charge of the advertising and marketing of the city.