Pro Deo Church identity
Challenge
Pro Deo is no ordinary Christian church. Established 2016 in Cape Town, it focuses on reaching people who do not normally attend church. Churches are, according to Pro Deo, unfortunately viewed as judgmental, boring, too traditional, irrelevant or exclusive, Pro Deo want to change this perception.
“We want to change the way people perceive church, by being relevant, passionate, and creative in the way we are a church. We want to welcome and love all people by including them in the community. We do not live for ourselves, but bring positive change to people and our communities.”
In short, the brief was: “do not make us look like a traditional church, make us bold, current and different”.
Outcome
The name Pro Deo is Latin ‘for God’, and part of Pro Deo’s philosophy lies in the ‘Up-In-and-Out’ beliefs which informed the development of the identity. Up = Relation to God, In = Relation to one another, Out = Relation to the world. The triangle was used in the creation of the logo’s brand mark and further carried out in the form of a diagonal grid used as a guide in designing icons. The brand mark is used in conjunction with the word mark – strong, bold and contemporary in its appearance. To break from the boldness of the logo and give it a human touch, a hand script font was introduced for messaging copy. It brings a sense of ‘realness’ and spirituality to an otherwise fairly strict and modern identity.
Pro Deo is a multi-site church, necessitating the need for secondary logo versions to identify areas where they are setting up new churches. Apart from creating the identity, K&i also designed a understated yet slick stationery set with business cards printed on Saville Row cotton mix paper with a blind emboss. Banners, flags, vehicle wraps, t-shirts, stickers, brochures, and adverts were designed for print and online.
