Linguistic Landscape
– Project nameLinguistic Landscape 16
– RoleBrand designer
– DateAutumn – Summer 2026
– SpecsAdobe Illustrator
Abobe InDesignAdobe Photoshop
For this project I redesigned the logotype for the 16th workshop of Linguistic Landscape – a conference held that was held at the University of Duisburg-Essen located in the Ruhr area of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany in 2025. The conference is held at a different location every year, so requires a new bespoke identity each time to be used on screen on the client’s website and BlueSky and off screen, on an array of merchandise such as tote bags, cups and pens.
ResearchAs the client was based in Germany, I was unable to visit and collect primary research. As a result, I gathered material online by consulting sources of inspiration that pertained to the client’s needs after our initial client meeting, as detailed next. To keep this research as relevant as possible, I wanted to capture the gritty essence of the conference’s area.
IdeationAfter my initial meeting with the client and discussing the job ahead, I created three mood boards to distill the possible directions that the client may have wanted to pursue as this was not concrete. Initially the client favoured two directions, so for the next meeting I decided to create different moodboards that distilled each visual style; metalic, street-art and protest. I also sketched potential appearances of the logo in the different styles and conducted experimentation with tape inspired by protest placards to ultimately gauge which direction they truly favoured.
Initial moodboards
Initial sketches
Tape experimentation
DevelopmentThe client decided that they preferred the urban, industrial visual style after I presented the mood boards, sketches and experimentation to them. The tape, protest concept wasn’t successful as it jeopardised legibility, and was time consuming to make by hand, which was not sympathetic to the quick-paced nature of the job.
After presenting initial logos to client expressed that they liked the condensed nature of Univers and boldness og Gotham. To make the decision between both typefaces easier, I re-designed them in different weights to provide the client with an ample sample to choose a singular direction from.
Initial logos
Core deliverableThe primary objective for this job was to produce a logo that has two variations; extended and condensed. This was because the client did not want to be constrained when selecting the range of aforementioned objects to apply the logo to, because of the range between their sizes. I achieved this by integrating a mascot into the full logotype, the Zeche Zollverein – a modernist structure that was formally a coal mine shaft – which could be removed and integrated with the initial of the extended logotype (L) to form the condensed logo. This allowed for smaller objects, such as pens, to be branded, as well as larger objects, like tote bags, simultaneously. The client also later requested to have multiple texturised versions of both logos to add greater depth to the identity by referencing the surrounding area of the conference’s industrial history.
Final logos