THE CHALLENGE
Herefordshire Council’s ‘Art + People + Place’ public art programme launched in April 2024 to celebrate Hereford’s rich history and transform the city’s urban environment. Together with artists, students, organisations and local people we came up with creative solutions that engaged the public and showcased the unique culture of Herefordshire.
We were briefed on designing a short publication (which would act as a catalogue for the artwork on display) and also a map. Although these were standalone pieces, they had to use a distinctive brand system and have an exclusive look and feel that encouraged the viewer to treasure them, rather than throw them away after use.
“TDL Creative were a pleasure to work with from start to finish. The team captured our ambition for the Hereford Public Art Trail from the outset, taking time to understand local needs and creating a bespoke, beautifully-designed trail map and publication that far exceeded our expectations.”
Sarah Lee, Culture and Leisure Lead at Herefordshire Council
SOLUTION 1
Before working on the deliverables, we created a ‘house style’ for the public art programme, giving it its own personality, look and feel. After presenting three concepts to the client and stakeholders, it was decided to develop the ‘dark traditional’ style.
The final branding used a section of one of the artworks as the background pattern, as well as introducing the Herefordshire Council bright yellow into the colour palette to subtly tie it all together.
SOLUTION 2
Our next port of call was tackling the map. Oliver, being local to Hereford, plotted out a route based on where the murals and sculptures were to be installed. After this was signed off by the client, Chris then populated the map using the brand house style for the Art Programme.
To guide users and add interest, key landmarks were illustrated by Robin and other notable city artworks were plotted on (one of these dating back to the 1800s!).
Designing something that’s meant to be kept, treasured and celebrated was a welcome task. I really enjoyed working with our friends at Rapidity to decide on the best finish to make the publication hit that mark – I always feel like a kid in a sweet shop when it comes to picking print finishes for editorial pieces!
Robin Smith, Mid-weight Designer at TDL-Creative
SOLUTION 3
Designing of the catalogue was scheduled to start later in the project, as the sculptures and murals needed to be completed in order to add in imagery. The final booklet, like the map, used the programme’s brand style (colour palette, font etc.) and featured vibrant full-bleed image spreads of the murals. Big shout-out to Shooting Reels for capturing such vibrant pictures of the artworks!
Large quotes throughout helped to vary the pace of the document, and the print size (B5) ensured that it was easy to interact with whilst on the move – and also take home.
“This was such a great project for us to work on, spanning branding, document design, wayfinding and of course print, which is a rare thing these days! For me though, it was the pleasure of working on a project on my ‘home turf’ of Herefordshire, and seeing how it was part of a wider initiative to transform the city, engaging with a passionate project team who really want to make a difference.”
Oliver Tomlinson, Managing Director and Founder at TDL-Creative
PROJECT COLLABORATORS
A huge thank you to all of the businesses, organisations and creatives we worked with on this project such as Herefordshire Council, Studio Response, Shooting Reels, Meadow Arts, Hereford College of Arts and of course all of the talented artists who participated.
More information about the programme and trail can be found below:
https://www.herefordshire.gov.uk/publicart
https://meadowarts.org/event/hereford-sculpture-trail/
https://www.herefordshire.gov.uk/things/hereford-public-art-collection/10
“It has been a triumph with those taking part in the art trail, requiring a reprint after the first weekend alone, and is now starting to bring in tourists from all over the UK.”
Sarah Lee, Culture and Leisure Lead at Herefordshire Council