Sky is Yellow, and the Sun Is Blue:
The Blue Apple of Knowledge
Azura’s proposal for the new visual identity of the City of Zagreb Library was an exercise in practicing the art of looking sideways.
Within the already established category of library visual identities—where we expect, and often receive, various references to paper, books, and typography — the search for a symbol that would bring a new perspective to the institution began with the motif of the apple and an interpretation of its symbolism. A powerful symbol representing knowledge, health, temptation, innovation, and a vision of a new and better future. It is therefore a perfect message of all the wishes for our city and its social and cultural institutions.
Graphically, the process is typical: a reduction of the motif that retains the basic idea and form of the apple, presented through the fundamental strokes with which we create and write. The sign and the identity are characterized by the dominant use of the traditional blue Zagreb color, accompanied by a system of related tones. These are used according to the needs of each application and context, bringing much-needed liveliness and warmth.
To ensure that the system has the necessary breadth, considering the content and services offered to end users, the typography is defined through the use of a strong serif typeface — a typically bookish display style* — for titles and main messages, while the more neutral yet still humanistic Univers complements it unobtrusively across all applications.
If sometimes the sun is blue, perhaps the apple can be too. **
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( 1 ) Dominicale Alpha by Altiplano — https://altiplano.xyz/
@altiplano_typefaces
( 2 ) Gustafi – Kadi su ta vrata (1995).
Quote from the lyric “Nebo je žuto, a sunce je blu,” roughly translated as “The sky is yellow, and the sun is blue.”
Photography of Jelkovec library copyright of respected authors via Vizkultura.
