Fresh From The Field — Jasmax Brand
This Fresh from the Field features the Jasmax Brand identity and book (recently recognised as a finalist in the 2020 best awards). Jasmax believes great design can awaken the human spirit, providing shape to cities and cultures… their renewed brand expresion is evidence of this and reflects the practices new strategic design direction and commitment to bicultural design.
If you have new or recent work that you would like to share in Fresh from the Field email nicole@designassembly.org.nz for details.
The Kaupapa:
The aim of the Jasmax brand identity is to reflect the practice’s new strategic design direction and commitment to bicultural design.
As architecture and design evolve alongside the disciplines themselves, new skillsets and strategic priorities are brought into focus. As such the rebuilt brand identity for Jasmax clarifies the practice’s position as a bicultural design company, committed to Te Ao Māori worldview by creating architecture and design unique to Aotearoa New Zealand.
The Design Response:
A reductive but flexible identity system was devised to enable clear and consistent communication of Jasmax’s collective creative confidence. The business is a big practice with a significant history, and as such the identity needed to convey professionalism and design excellence. By using a simplified system that includes a small palette of colours, Kris Sowersbys Untitled Sans and the Aukaha pattern language, the brand design team has enabled a simplified thinking across multiple touchpoints and templates including design reports and other client-facing material.
Jasmax lives and dies by the engagement of their people. The evidence that the identity has been successful in appealing to Jasmax’s staff on an authentic level has been reported across the board by the teams willingness and desire to engage wholeheartedly in the new brand direction and how Te Ao Māori worldview can be incorporated in what the company does for clients and communities.
There has been an uptake in clients’ willingness to start conversations around sustainability and bicultural design approaches. Overall, the identity and its wider expression allowed Jasmax to fill a difficult business challenge, attracting the kind of projects the practice wants to work on.
