Anti Branding?

I teach graphic design at a University in London and one of my specialist the subjects is branding. The arguments made in COMPRA if read superficially seem to be anti branding and could be interpreted as being against the profession I promote to my students. This is not my position. There is  a problem within areas of the branding industry that stems out of a lack of respect for context and a need to create efficient homogenizing identity systems. I would encourage designers to respect what is there already, to respect tradition, heritage and content. The identity that Moving Brands created for Saville Row tailoring label E. Tautz is a good example of how designers can work with the heritage of a brand to create something rich and contemporary. We also should not to dismiss vernacular in favour of a universally acknowledged aesthetic. One size of Helvetica 55 does not fit all and if we want to produce work that lasts beyond the latest trend then we need to engage with subject matter and not the latest cool design blog. COMPRA is meant to be a celebration of visual languages that naturally evolve and are not imposed by an exterior force. I believe this is richer, more complex, more interesting and actually more relevant to the user. These users might not be familiar with the niche trend of the moment but they are not ignorant. If we actually consult with them and respect their opinion we will have something that is more relevant to their needs and actually more successful as a piece of design. 

Typography

As a student of typography, the movement that was started by the Bauhaus and Jan Tschichold and later built upon by people like Muller Brockmann, Otl Aicher and Armin Hoffmann, until it became an international style, has always been an inspiration. In parts of Spain you can still find shop signs and architectural typography crudely executed in this style. They survive from a time before the design by committee refinements of the eighties and nineties. You can also find the sort of eccentric, decorative typography that originated at Push Pin studios and achieved mass distribution through companies like Letraset in the nineteen seventies. Finally, there are also many examples of pure vernacular - hand drawn, incorrectly spaced, mis-matched and imperfect. A Coruña had all of these curiosities and more: (click images to enlarge)

More about Shops...

Through the eyes of the metropolitan Graphic Designer the visual language employed by small shops in places like A Coruña is probably naff and unfashionable. They break almost every textbook rule of branding - inconsistent typography, conflicting logos, confusing signage (one bar doesn’t even indicate what it is!) However, these are businesses with individual personalities that cannot be communicated through a ‘catch all’ homogenizing identity. They are very far away from the niche aesthetic developed by an art school elite and have no marketing focus group to decide what is right for them. Their vernacular identities are not to everyone’s taste. They are often brash and ugly, badly executed and sloppy, but this is what makes the high street in places like A Coruña so diverse and visually dynamic. Their visual identity relates to what these businesses are - locally connected, quirky and diverse. They are informal and often inefficient, but given the choice would you really want to replace them with the bland, sanitized efficiency of brands like Boots, WHSmith, Tescos and Primark? (click images to enlarge)