LPO moves on with Rufus Leonard

The acclaimed London Philharmonic Orchestra is set to launch the first revamp of its branding in more than ten years.

Rufus Leonard is behind the new-look identity, which rolls out across the orchestra’s 2004/2005 season guide, concert programmes, stationery and website, www.lpo.co.uk, from this week.

The revamp comes shortly before the LPO embarks upon a more peripatetic existence. Its longstanding home, the Royal Festival Hall, is due to close in July 2005 for two years of refurbishment work (DW 22 April).

‘We’ll be performing outside of our home during that period, so it’s important for us to have a strong brand,’ explains LPO marketing director Emily Smith.

She tasked Rufus Leonard with creating an identity that would differentiate the orchestra from its London counterparts and would be identifiable to its diverse audiences. ‘We’ve also come to a point in our history where we’re very confident,’ adds Smith. ‘Our ticket sales and audience capacity are up and our artistic output is of extraordinary quality. We wanted to capture some of that energy in our visual identity.’

Rufus Leonard creative director Andrew Fleming says the ‘modern, anti-logo’ word marque conveys LPO’s roots in the capital and allows the orchestra to ‘speak for itself. The twist is that it’s bright pink and black. It’s quite radical and fresh.’

The star device, which is influenced by the ‘splat symbol’ that Rufus Leonard devised for LPO more than a decade ago, ‘signifies quality and can be used as a graphic device’, he adds.