Motorsport venue Silverstone launches new branding

The new branding, developed by DS.Emotion, includes an update of Carter Wong’s 2001 speedmark logo and a typeface which uses a “racing line”.

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Motor racing circuit Silverstone is launching a new identity, which includes an update of its Carter Wong-designed logo.

The brand update has been led by DS.Emotion, which says it is aiming to “align the brand with innovation”.

The consultancy says it has “sharpened” Carter Wong’s speedmark logo, which originally launched in 2001. It has also looked to give it “clearer lines” and make it more three-dimensional.

Carter Wong says its original logo was inspired by the vanishing points in the Union Flag, and aimed to signify movement and energy.

Tom Heaton, creative director at DS.Emotion Manchester, says: “The speedmark symbol has been under utilised and disappeared from much of the identity application, but this mark symbolises the essence of the brand.”

The new typeface has a "racing line" running through each letter
The new typeface has a “racing line” running through each letter

DS.Emotion has also created a new typeface, which it says is inspired by the racing line, which runs through all the letters. The consultancy says all typefaces and symbols were drawn by hand before being applied digitally.

To support the rebrand, DS.Emotion has also developed new brand guidelines and has designed a new website, which is set to launch in the spring.

 

Silverstone car
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  • phil carter April 15, 2016 at 11:33 am

    Let me be the first to congratulate Silverstone on the launch of its ‘new’ branding, with its bold and dynamic Speedmarque signifying movement and energy. Well, I would say that having created it some 15 year ago and, from what we can tell here in our studio, nothing has changed from our original design. Apparently it’s been ‘sharpened’, given ‘clearer lines’, and made ‘more three dimensional’ however, having overlayed this ‘new’ version over our original design it seems that DS. Emotion are telling a bit of a porky pie.

    We do have to agree that “The speedmark symbol has been under utilised and disappeared from much of the identity application, but this mark symbolises the essence of the brand.” But please, credit where it’s due.
    Introducing a slightly different font to sit with our original logo does not constitute new branding.

    When I see work as inspiring and truly original as the new Domino’s pizza packs on this very same page I wholeheartedly applaud client and agency alike. When I see work that we created being attributed to another agency I despair that both they and the client have stooped to such low levels of subterfuge.

  • David Jones April 15, 2016 at 1:18 pm

    It strikes me as a little odd to PR an identity that’s so close to the original solution created by Carter Wong, all-be-it with a new (conceptually neat) logotype… I thoroughly understand Phil Carter’s frustration and question why DS. Emotion would ‘put it out’ there as a ‘new’ identity. Unfortunately they’re not the first and certainly won’t be the last to claim ownership of someone else’s creative work via a bit of tweaking.

  • Neil Hedger April 17, 2016 at 8:23 pm

    Beyond the very minor graphic updates of the speedmarque symbol, the original idea by Carter Wong remains the real visual hero here, and thankfully so. Marker pens and brilliant thinking will always triumph over graphic highlights.

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