Account

iceberg
Cornwall Park

2020

Submission # 176
Output

Identity – Tuakiri
Kaupapa

Identity – Place

Identity – People & Culture
Location

Auckland, Tāmaki Makaurau

Project Overview:
In 2018, The Cornwall Park Trust Board, who manages and operates Cornwall Park, undertook a strategic review of the park brand. Through strategic stakeholder workshops and iwi consultation, the board recognised that the brand was not sufficiently communicating the rich history and cultural significance of the park.

New Zealanders simply didn’t know what a special place it was. This sprawling urban oasis, rich with history and natural beauty was a gift to the people of New Zealand by Sir John Logan Campbell in 1901.

A project to revitalise the brand identity was initiated to ensure current and future generations would engage, experience and interact with the park in a more meaningful way.

Kaupapa:
To bring the park’s rich history to life, we knew our identity and signage system needed to celebrate the ever-changing natural beauty of the park and its place as a place of significant cultural value. It has a complex history and important story that needs to be told.

Response:
To anchor the identity, we created a custom stencil typeface to echo the type historically seen on wool bales (the park is still a working farm after all), and we embellished the characters with calligraphic flourishes and floral terminals that echo organic plant life and in the decorative cast iron Art Nouveau details seen in the park. Sir John dedicated the obelisk on Maungakiekie to pay respect to the site’s history as a Māori Pā. We conveyed this through angular and sharpened serifs as if sliced during Tā moko.

To celebrate the rich plant-life of the park, the brand identity was built around a series of brand patterns shaped like plants and materials seen in the park. The patterns are layered together to provide a diverse mix of colour and energy. This system enabled a range of applications to be created that feel new and distinct each time.

These patterns come to life when used in the signage system as cut out shapes, and when laminated together, they create the grand entrance signage. Each type of sign is different and the pattern in the sign matches the location and plant-life in that area of the park where the sign is located.

Archiver’s Response:

"A standout bespoke letterform referencing place is beautifully created and managed."

Credits & Collaborators:
Blank - iceberg