THIS summer season, on June 22, The National Portrait Gallery is set to reveal its rebranded strategies to coincide with its anticipated reopening. The new brand, which will be visible on the Gallery’s website and digital channels, is aimed at bringing the Gallery’s Collection to life for more people.
The National Portrait Gallery’s new brand system and visual identity has been developed in partnership with Edit Brand Studio and Boardroom Consulting. Inspired by motifs found within the Gallery’s refurbished building, the new brand is uplifted and designed to reflect the Gallery’s role as a place that is for the people, by the people, while telling the story of Britain’s past, present, and future through portraits.
Striving to create a stronger, more focused identity for the Gallery, the new designs continue to reflect the rich heritage and are based on motifs that are already present in the Gallery’s building, such as the initials ‘NPG’, showcased in the metalwork of railings, furniture, and original mosaics. The same motifs also appear in archival materials, such as an original sketch by the Gallery’s first director, Sir George Scharf, who incorporated the letters ‘NPG’ into his work in 1893.
Nevertheless, in addition to that, drawing inspiration from historic fonts within the gallery, the new brand also includes a bespoke logotype, hand-drawn by renowned illustrator and typographer Peter Horridge, alongside a modern typeface, NPG Serif, developed by Monotype. These are combined with a new, more vibrant colour scheme influenced by the paint and materials found throughout the building and archive.
To emphasise on this fresh and modern direction this summer, The National Portrait Gallery will deliver a more daring display of the Gallery’s greatest collection of portraits.
by Zlata Kryudor