ASHA presents three options for Cheltenham Art Gallery rebrand

Arthur Steen Horne Adamson has developed three potential concepts in its rebrand of Cheltenham Art Gallery and Museum.

The C-Mag option
The C-Mag option

The three potential routes are being presented for public feedback ahead of a council cabinet meeting on 17 September, which will see the new brand selected.

A spokeswoman for Cheltenham Borough Council says the final decision on the new identity will be taken by the cabinet, but that they will take public feedback into account.

The three potential new identities, developed by ASHA, which is based in Cheltenham, are called The Wilson, C-Mag and Fifty One.

The Wilson takes its name from Cheltenham-born explorer, doctor, scientist and artist Edward Wilson and references ‘the history that makes up part of the [museum’s] collection’.

The Wilson Option
The Wilson Option

The C-Mag option is described as a ‘simple, modern’ design which is based around the acronym of Cheltenham Museum and Art Gallery.

The C-Mag option shown on campaign
The C-Mag option shown on campaign

The Fifty One option is proposed as 51 is the number of the museum’s main building.

The Fifty One option
The Fifty One option

Cheltenham Borough Council says it was ‘keen that ASHA developed proposals that would reflect the vast range of cultural activities and opportunities that Cheltenham Art Gallery and Museum provides to the community and reflect the heritage and history of the building and its collections.’

If approved, the new brand will be showcased at the unveiling of the new building, designed by Berman Guedes Stretton, on 5 October.

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  • Tim Molloy November 30, -0001 at 12:00 am

    I speak as a non-local but addicted museum goer. CMAG gets my vote…it’s confident, memorable and adaptable. The other 2 contenders overly rely on an intimate, local knowledge of the museum…a disadvantage if the attempt is to reach out beyond a local audience.

  • Adam Oates November 30, -0001 at 12:00 am

    Of the three, I vote for C-MAG. It most accurately represents the museum itself, caters to the inane human tendancy to love and adopt acronyms, and is legible at all sizes.
    The Wilson is interesting to behold, but I suspect it loses legibility at smaller sizes, and I don’t much see the sense in naming a museum after one single artist.
    51 is the weakest concept, as it bears no descernable reference to the museum, it’s spirit, or what sort of exhibits it contains. In general, I feel the 51 concept fails in achieving the goals in the brief and was likely only included for the illusion of choice.

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