One of the most iconic institutions in the UK, and perhaps even the world, the UK parliament (previously known as Houses of Parliament), has launched a new visual identity. The project, led by London-based design agency SomeOne, intends to further unify the previously disparate identities of the House of Commons and the House of Lords. The identity, the studio says, “is digitally-led and is supported by multiple application grids and flexible colour systems”.
“Parliament should be there for the people. If the people can’t see that, there’s a crucial issue there. So we want to rebrand parliament to show it’s there for you, and not for the government.”
The project was assigned to SomeOne in late 2016. SomeOne held meetings and consultations with the administrative staff of the House of Commons and House of Lords throughout the design process. It was quickly identified the main issue was the digital application of the brand. Multiple design concepts were shown to the parliamentary managers, who selected the final brand identity.
The new logo includes a refined version of the previous crowned portcullis – a heavy, medieval-style, grated gate – symbol, alongside the new name set in sans-serif typeface National to the right of the symbol. The typeface was designed by type foundry Klim.
“The new visual identity has been designed to provide the consistency and coherence that was previously lacking, and enable faster, clearer visual communication, primarily across digital platforms,” says Simon Manchipp, co-founder at SomeOne.
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