TEDxChristchurch 2018: The Campfire
Following in the tradition of their stripped-backed 2017 event, TEDxChristchurch came to us with the 2018 theme of ‘The Campfire’. This year’s event was to be a celebration of diversity: diversity of culture, ethnicity, age, gender, sex, and opinion. It was our job to create an identity that would help open the audience's minds to see things in a different light.
Instead of showing cliché imagery associated with campfires, we took the distinct warm glow of the fire and applied a flexible typographic system around it. This restrained approach complemented the nature of the intimate, 327-seat event.
We once again partnered with Spectrum Print and BJ Ball to produce bespoke printed ephemera for the event. This year we decided to create two complementary pieces: an A2 fold-out poster/programme and an A6 notebook. The notebook featured a saddle-sewn spine to create a tactile experience. However, the stand-out feature was the glow-in-the-dark cover, as it added an aspect of surprise and delight when the theatre lights went down.
The event was once again a roaring success, selling out in record time. Many people commented on the identity on the day (especially the glow-in-the-dark notebooks), but this didn’t get in the way of what mattered most—the speakers, the audience, and the volunteers sharing a collective experience of ideas worth spreading.
