Kiola Art
Visual Idenity Design, Brand Strategy
Project Type
Visual Identity
Year
2022
Role
Brand Design Lead
Project Team
Alex Tudun
Supporting young artists means getting out of their way. Kiola champions young Nigerian artists, and the brief required balancing modern Nigerian youth energy with traditional Nigerian aesthetics. The question then arises: how do you honor cultural heritage and contemporary expression simultaneously without either side overwhelming the other? The studio needed an identity that says "safe space," "cultural authenticity," and "modern platform" without drowning out what actually matters; the work these artists create. The minimalism had to be intentional, not empty.
The crown logomark does double duty. It honors youth artistic efforts while pulling from African aesthetic traditions—"c(k)rown" merging identity with cultural reference. Black and white handle sophistication and neutrality. Blue builds trust and signals safety for emerging talent. Red, green, yellow (pulled from traditional African art) inject passion, growth, creativity without tipping into stereotype. Graphic elements carry specific meaning: layered forms represent culture and creativity stacking over time, pattern-like traditional symbols bridge eras, abstract fluid shapes show how young artists adapt across mediums. The minimal aesthetic is strategic. It creates space for unique stories and identities to take center stage, letting the artists' work do the talking while the brand provides structure.
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