Smithfield 150. We worked with Museum of London and Culture Mile to help London’s iconic Smithfield Market celebrate its 150th anniversary. We created an identity designed to welcome and engage Londoners and visitors, and get people down to a weekend of free events over the August Bank Holiday weekend.
The celebration was a big, fun, outdoor event with a focus on families and kids. So, we developed a positive, upbeat and accessible design to reflect this.
Amazing type. The area around Smithfield Market has amazing typographic shop signs - both old and new. Our team went on a type safari around the area and explored the many signs and that can be found around the market.
Our research gave us loads of inspiration for the Smithfield 150 identity, and we started developing a logo using one of the most traditional sans serif typefaces, Grotesques. We then worked with Chris from Toucan Signs, who grew up in this part of London, to bring the developed logotype to life using traditional hand painting techniques with a modern twist.
All of this resulted in a fun and engaging identity, attracting over 25,000 visitors over the weekend… despite the bad weather!
Social. We also used details from Abbey Lossing’s illustrations and our Smithfield 150 identity to create assets for social, to help promote and celebrate the event. We created a series of fun assets to be used on Museum of London and Culture Mile’s platforms.
Telling the story. Culture Mile commissioned us to create a film to showcase the role that Smithfield plays in the creative landscape of London, and the process of creating a sign using traditional methods. We worked with Chris from Toucan Signs and filmmakers It Drew Itself to tell this story through the lens of typography in the area.
Head of Communications, Museum of London and Culture Mile
