Earth Hour

It’s getting close to that time of year again, when BrandCulture and the world unite for a good cause. Earth hour is upon us, 8:30pm Saturday the 31st of March 2012. We take this event seriously and have since its … Continue reading →

It’s getting close to that time of year again, when BrandCulture and the world unite for a good cause. Earth hour is upon us, 8:30pm Saturday the 31st of March 2012. We take this event seriously and have since its launch in 2007, we switch off the lights, computers, servers, printers… everything on weekends when we leave the studio…  it ALL makes a tiny difference, but collectively it puts a real dent in the energy consumption (and bills ) which is changing the way we think…. let’s turn more electrical equipment off every day and do more to make a difference to our planets future.

For those who aren’t familiar with the Earth Hour concept here’s a brief rundown. Earth Hour was the brainchild of the WWF Organisation, conceived in Sydney 2007, the company inspired a population of thousands to band together for a common cause; climate change. Businesses large and small, politicians and children alike all took a stand against Global warming by switching off their lights for an hour. Today Earth Hour has more than a hundred million participants in over 135 countries!

We urge you to get involved,  to commit not just for the hour but to make changes in our lifestyles to help save our beautiful earth and ask yourself – “How long will it last”…

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Seeing Lumisty is believing

Our MD, Stephen Minning went to see how Coleman were progressing with the production on our next big project (we can’t reveal who it’s for just yet!). BrandCulture have devised an innovative solution using Lumisty, a 3 layered film which … Continue reading →

Our MD, Stephen Minning went to see how Coleman were progressing with the production on our next big project (we can’t reveal who it’s for just yet!). BrandCulture have devised an innovative solution using Lumisty, a 3 layered film which has never been used this way before, specially imported from Japan.

Originally developed for privacy when using ATM machines, lumisty is the world’s first ‘Point of View’ Glazing Film or perhaps the only glazing film that changes from clear to frosted depending on the viewing angle.

Upon first encountering the product, people are often struck by what they think is an optical illusion. Walking past a window with lumisty applied, a perfectly clear, transparent glass surface becomes, in a step or two, partially frosted. Two or three steps later, the same window is completely frosted. Walk backward or forward, and it’s clear again. As the viewer’s angle shifts, so does the transparency or translucency of the film.

On a lighter note, Coleman (who like a challenge!) have an “office hit list” out on their clients at the moment and after Stephen and team BrandCulture came up with the idea of the global map made up of thousands of dots, each dot to be cut and installed on location exactly 45mm apart over an 11m glass stairwell, using the lumisty material, they decided to make Stephen #2 on their hit list. I wonder who #1 is??!!

Check back soon for an update as to what and who this project is for!

To the guys at Coleman – another great job, thank you!

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Lost in Concrete Confusion

More publications…… segdDESIGN have recently published their magazine, issue 34 which features BrandCulture’s World Square Car Park. Their statement, says ” Whether they’re placemaking, camouflaging, or guiding, these parking garage graphics put the FUN in functional….” here here!! Multi storey … Continue reading →

More publications……

segdDESIGN have recently published their magazine, issue 34 which features BrandCulture’s World Square Car Park. Their statement, says ” Whether they’re placemaking, camouflaging, or guiding, these parking garage graphics put the FUN in functional….” here here!!

Multi storey car parks have a complex set of navigation challenges for a wayfinding designer to address. Consideration for the needs of pedestrians and motorists – differentiating between arrival and departure journeys as well as service or vendor routes. Competing distractions vying for driver attention i.e. the hunt for vacant spaces, absent minded pedestrians and reversing cars all need to be taken into account. Unlike many environments where the design brief is for discrete solutions that remain largely invisible until required, a car park of this size needs clear advice that is hard to miss.

Our research showed that the line of sight for the two main users, ie motorists and pedestrians and truly understanding the traffic flow of the space used were key to creating an innovative wayfinding system. These principles ultimately led to a better understanding of how cognitive mapping and circulatory navigation would help the outcome. Using intuitive design featuring full height icons, type and colours viewable over long distances; the second from the more elevated position of a pedestrian standing, the experiential factor then became a differentiator between this car park and so many others around the globe, and helped gain industry best recognition.

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Follow Me! Publication

What a great way to start the year, BrandCulture have just received their brand-new, shiny copy of “Follow Me – Wayfinding & Signage System” by SendPoints Publishing which includes four of our projects; Sydney Water Parramatta, World Square Car Park, … Continue reading →

What a great way to start the year, BrandCulture have just received their brand-new, shiny copy of “Follow Me – Wayfinding & Signage System” by SendPoints Publishing which includes four of our projects; Sydney Water Parramatta, World Square Car Park, Mirvac Perth and UTS – Find & Discover.

As we believe, wayfinding is ultimately a science: the science of helping people find their way around. But just as importantly, there is an art to creating appealing, logical wayfinding systems as key opportunities to connect and communicate. When done successfully, wayfinding is a discipline that understands how individuals make decisions and perceive the environment when navigating unfamiliar spaces, and then responds with intuitive, aesthetically appealing results.

Wayfinding can be defined as spatial problem solving. It is knowing where you are in a building or an environment, knowing where your desired location is, and knowing how to get there from your present location. A good wayfinding system gives strong indicators of where the user is and how to get to her destination from her present location. Wayfinding problems occur when decisions cannot be executed.

With each project we take a scientific and creative approach to designing Wayfinding systems that have meaning and impact. This publication contains 126 applications and 49 concepts, sharing international knowledge and pioneering new concepts and designs for wayfinding, in the built environment.

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Our View Point

BrandCulture has recently completed an installation design at Commbank Place at Darling Harbour that has roots influenced by the Swiss artist Falice Varini. The key messaging for Commonwealth Bank was to welcome the cus tomer into their new branch and … Continue reading →

BrandCulture has recently completed an installation design at Commbank Place at Darling Harbour that has roots influenced by the Swiss artist Falice Varini. The key messaging for Commonwealth Bank was to welcome the cus

tomer into their new branch and to display one of the most recognisable and trusted brandmarks in the Country to their clientele, a reminder of why they choose to bank with the Commonwealth Bank of Australia. BrandCulture was asked to work on a zigzag feature wall within the space that could display information to people both leaving and entering… Longtime fans of Varini’s work, BrandCulture set about to integrate the Commonwealth Bank messaging and branding into the environment.

The following is a excerpt from Varini’s site…“My field of action is architectural space and everything that constitutes such space. These spaces are and remain the original media for my painting. I work “on site” each time in a different space and my work develops itself in relation to the spaces I encounter. I generally roam through the space noting its architecture, materials, history and function.”

BrandCulture looked closely at how the customers would move through the space, making use of the traffic workflow and spaces… Personal banking areas equipped with iPads, telephones and printers are located along the main feature wall. If more assistance is needed the teller location at the back of the office does away with security screens and a more personable experience with relaxed tables and offices. Turning to exit the space, an automatic foreign exchange converter and coin counter sit opposite the feature wall. These locations create a natural viewpoint for the feature wall, part of an “inevitable route” within the space, a perfect opportunity to view the installation.

Varini goes on to say “From these spatial data and in reference to the last piece I produced, I designate a specific vantage point for viewing from which my intervention takes shape. The vantage point is carefully chosen: it is generally situated at my eye level and located preferably along an inevitable route, for instance an aperture between one room and another, a landing… I do not, however, make a rule out of this, for all spaces do not systematically possess an evident line.It is often an arbitrary choice. The vantage point will function as a reading point, that is to say, as a potential starting point to approaching painting and space.The painted form achieves its coherence when the viewer stands at the vantage point.”

Entering or exiting the space gives the viewer multiple viewpoints of the branding, the messaging and the images that focus on the inter-dependant relationship between the bank and their clients. The imagery of these moments represent the customer and also the development of our communities right across Australia by capturing local imagery to the branch. Whilst the Entry and Teller points highlight these assets, the real experience is had moving through the space and seeing the movement and construction of the logo, the development of the typography and the visual moments featured along the wall.

Lastly, Varini deals with the changing view points… “When he* moves out of it, the work meets with space generating infinite vantage points on the form. It is not therefore through this original vantage point that I see the work achieved; it takes place in the set of vantage points the viewer can have on it. If I establish a particular relation to architectural features that influence the installation shape, my work still preserves its independence whatever architectural spaces I encounter. I start from an actual situation to construct my painting. Reality is never altered, erased or modified, it interests and seduces me in all its complexity. I work “here and now”. Felice Varini

To view the Commonwealth Bank Darling Walk Branch, please click here

This work has also been published at the Desktop Magazine’s and AGDA Website

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