Design Challenge and Design Ideas

Towards a University for the Creative Industries
We worked with IADT to deliver the physical and digital versions of their strategic plan for 2024–28. The brief from the outset was to deliver a forward thinking design output, befitting of the high standards the institution sets for itself and its students. With the digital format of the plan we focussed particularly on ensuring none of the immediacy of the printed application was lost in translation. To achieve this both digital and printed outputs were conceived in tandem with interactivity and video content in mind from the start. The result, we hope, is a cohesive and engaging digital equivalent to the printed piece, that reflects IADT’s vision for the future.

How the brief was fulfilled

Resolution
Audience insight and future focus
We identified three key personas — students, staff, and governing bodies — as the primary audience for the project. Our approach, perhaps counterintuitively, was to challenge the conventional norms typically associated with documents of this nature, as a means of appealing to this target audience and strategically as a means of to standing out from the crowd.

Clarity and simplicity
The underlying framework, visible across all applications, highlights a structured and methodical approach to strategic success. Pillars and objectives within an overall strategy can be extensive and interrelated, so delivering these in a clear and accessible way was critical to the final design.

People and planning
We worked with IADT to commission portraits (both static and video) of staff and students, which are featured throughout the publication and digital platform. These images help humanise the document, ensuring that the IADT community feels engaged and invested in the ambitious vision set out in the Strategic Plan.

Design & Production
We worked closely with IADT to create a sustainable yet durable design. The final design included three outcomes: the main report for distribution to government, a summary report for staff members, and a protective sleeve in which to keep the summary report intact.

Typefaces Neue Haas Grotesk and Suisse Neue were used to differentiate the strategy from the existing IADT brand and to solidify their push towards a University for the Creative Industries.

Details
Main Report
— 190x250mm, 60 pages excluding cover.
— Cover printed black litho and white digital on 300gsm Brown Twin Kraft Board.
— Inner pages: 120gsm Shiro Echo White, 100% recycled.
— Thread-sewn book blocks with black linen tape down spine.
— Fold-in flap to front of cover & Swiss bound to back cover.

Summary Report
— 145x190mm, 28 pages, self-cover.
— All pages printed full color throughout. Outside front and outside back cover printed with white digital.
— 120gsm Shiro Echo White, 100% recycled.
— Finished with black staples.

Protective Sleeve
— 229x162mm Black Post Marque Lightweight, 180gsm Peel & Seal Envelopes.
— Printed with white digital ink.