Kulturhuset in Bergen has a capacity of 1100 people, and it is bustling with activity every day of the week, daytime as well as evenings. Four floors, three stages, three bars, a restaurant, a gallery, meeting rooms and much more. This was the starting point for the work to design a visual identity.
The Reklamekollektivet creative agency worked in partnership with architects En til En Arkitekter, the owners of the building, the project promoters, the CEO and other key stakeholders to develop a brand platform. ‘Unexpectedly liberating’ was coined as the venue’s core value, which was also to become the guiding principle for the work to develop a graphic profile and visual identity.
Gauges the atmosphere
The aim was to ensure that the venue’s visual communication would reflect its atmosphere and content at any time. To achieve this, innovative technology (generative design) was employed to gauge the atmosphere and transform sound into a visual expression.
This is how the house of culture in Bergen has found a live and ever-changing visual identity that is renewed in step with the venue’s changing activities and cultural expressions.
'Unexpectedly liberating'
When Kulturhuset first opened, pandemic restrictions were still in place. Nevertheless, the venture was soon well-established, both as a brand and as a venue. From day one the building has been brimming with activities and the turnout for events has been overwhelming.
In fact, there is therefore reason to say that the people of Bergen have gained a place of assembly where the ‘unexpectedly liberating’ can be encountered.
The visual identity has an inclusive feel in that it embraces so many aspects of culture, and it helps to lower the barriers between different genres. The graphics are used as waymarks, showing how to access the building’s many parts and floors. Together, the full palette of analogue and digital means of communication provides a crucial link between the building, its content and the public.
Project: Visual identity for Bergen House of Culture (Bergen Kulturhus)
By: Reklamekollektivet and Kulturhuset i Bergen AS
Design disciplines: Brand and identity design
Recipient of the DOGA Award
This project has received the DOGA Award for Design and Architecture for its outstanding qualities and for showing how strategic use of design and architecture create important social, environmental and economic value.
These are two reasons why this is an exemplary project:
- An attractive arena
A distinctive visual identity has helped Kulturhuset in Bergen get quickly established as an attractive venue for the city’s cultural scene.
- A good base for a diverse cultural scene
The venue’s very identity is unconstrained, inviting and inclusive. This is a good basis for a flourishing, diverse cultural scene.
