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The RGD reveals branding for Creative Directions 2021 by Studio Millie
28/01/21
Inspired by all things travel, we are thrilled to
unveil the branding by our Design Partner Studio Millie for Creative Directions 2021 taking place from May 3 to 7.
Registration opens March 15! Sign up to get updates.
"It's an exciting year for Creative Directions because the programming will now include streams for Intermediate and Senior Professionals. Part of our brief to Studio Millie was to add a level of sophistication and, dare I say panache, to the event to reflect this change. I personally identified with their metaphor of creative careers as indirect journeys. And as someone who has my old passport pages framed on the wall, I can't wait to get out and travel again. For now, taking this trip with Studio Millie will do nicely," says Julian Brown RGD, VP and Chair of the RGD's Communications Committee.
"We are a team of ziggers and zaggers when it comes to our professional journeys. We were happy to give the Creative Directions Conference a fresh new look to help bring some colour to other creatives who are embarking on their own creative journeys too," says Caitlin Wharton RGD, Founder and Creative Director at Studio Millie.
"We knew we wanted a colour palette that was inspired by vintage travel maps and old school hotels. The challenge came in pairing our desired palette with the RGD’s reddest red brand colour. Luckily for us, red and pink are in major cahoots right now so the outcome was successful: we could achieve the palette we wanted and could keep the brand integrity of the RGD intact," explains Caitlin.
With this fresh new identity, the team at Studio Millie hopes that participants feel inspired to take their career to new places, feel a twinge of joyful nostalgia, look towards the day we can travel again and perhaps cue up their fave Wes Anderson flick.
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For the branding, Studio Millie deep dived into all things travel and scoured piles of vintage maps which informed the palette. They looked at old photographs and printed materials that inspired a halftone photo treatment and janky offset registration graphics throughout the brand. The typeface was chosen from its likeness to highway road signs. They played with dozens of lockups to get the perfect stamp-feel for the many logo variations within the brand. All of these choices together created the final graphic suite you’ll see at the conference.
"You’ll see little elements of wonder and delight throughout the brand that have been inspired lovingly from travel visuals. You might see a name badge that looks like a map legend, supporting graphics that look like hotel-inspired assets or a logo lockup that looks like a passport stamp. All of these elements have been borrowed from the past and woven together to inspire us all to see a new future," offers Caitlin.
Stay tuned for more details on the 2021 Conference.
If you are interested in sponsoring Creative Directions 2021, email Michelle Pereira Hampton, Director of Communications & Development, at
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