Never having worked together before, Rafi, Tim and Lucas teamed up instinctively when proposals for the identity were invited from GCD students. Their concept was formed by their feelings of motion and flux as graduating students, and the playfulness and potential of their pitch won them the commission.
Rafi, Timothy and Lucas have worked on the campaign alongside their own final projects and assessments between February and June 2024. Inspired by analogue split flap transit boards, the identity covers the three main events in the CSM Shows season during May and June: CSM Shows: Foundation, CSM Shows: 2024 and CSM Shows: Postgraduate Art.
Working with course staff and the project team, Rafi, Tim and Lucas have delivered a full suite of assets for branding the shows physically and digitally across the College: digital animations with sound effects with lettering that flips, and static materials including window vinyls, riso printed maps and wayfinding signage that retain the movement.
The identity was initially teased on social media, in black and white with sound and unresolved text, building over time to reveal the identity in full with versions for each individual show.
The identity has also been displayed on digital billboards around the local area including Tottenham Court Road and Charing Cross Road, courtesy of our partnership with Clear Channel.
"The best part was the teamwork and friendship. It was really great to work with two very talented people and I feel that the collaboration really allowed us to discover and develop our individual strengths.
But more than anything the identity design has been such an amazing opportunity. To see it go from a seedling of an idea, all the way to being a very real and physical outcome that is all over the school has been incredibly gratifying and I couldn’t be prouder."
@_h0minid_ | UAL Showcase
"It was really good industry experience, but still in the context of the uni. So you're still learning, you could still make mistakes.
I contributed to the narrative and animation of the identity. We aimed to mirror the student experience in anticipation of the show, starting with the unresolved fragmented lettering in the first social media teasers - released when the students’ work was still in process. Over the course of the campaign, all the letters aligned, expressing both the students completing their final work and the many different departments and courses all coming together to present ‘Central Saint Martins Shows 2024’. I love working with narrative, in the future I’d love to continue telling stories in unique ways whether through campaigns or advertising.
It's amazing walking across Granary Square every morning. I was watching those window vinyls go up, every single one."
@timothy_huckle | UAL Showcase
"We’re a stellar team. We could tell as soon as we started working together — we could be constructive or critical and know that our words would never be taken the wrong way. I remember seeing the CSM building when I was sixteen, all I wanted was to study here. Seeing it now, decorated in the identity we’ve designed, really felt like I’d come full circle.
I’m all about the nitty-picky-gritty. I like details, and I’m interested in making real-world design. I like branding. I love typography. This is exactly what I needed to work on before going out into the industry."
www.lucasparfitt.co.uk | @lucasparfitt | UAL Showcase
Rafi, Tim and Lucas would like to thank Martin McGrath, Associate Lecturer, BA Graphic Communication Design Graduate Teaching Assistant Leonidas Liolios for guidance and support throughout the project.
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