What kind of being is a museum? What identity does it have?
Graphic images and visual identities of museums in Hungary and abroad
MúzeumCafé 35.
The Kassák Museum’s new corporate identity received the Red Dot Award in 2012. Red Dot, which was founded by Design Zentrum Nordrhein Westfalen in 1955 and is awarded on the basis of applications, is one of the most prominent recognitions in the international world of design. It is not the first award that designer Imre Lepsényi has received in the category of communication design: the corporate identity he created for the Israeli Cultural Institute in Budapest was also selected as one of the best in 2011. He and the staff of the Kassák Museum, which operates as a branch of the Petőfi Literary Museum, share the present success – yet, there is a lesson for the entire museum profession in Hungary, since it provides an excellent example of how, despite limited financial and administrative means, a public institution using design can redefine itself, take stock of its hidden possibilities and present itself to the public in an understandable way. In the new logo Lepsényi merged the letter K of Kassák’s initial with an exclamation mark, Kassák’s most often used emblematic punctuation mark. The designer was inspired by the artist’s picture architecture and shape poems to create the elements of the identity, while carefully avoiding concrete formal analogies or schematization. The end result is pure and consistent, yet varied, probing the boundaries of traditional visuality, while stimulating thought and changing viewpoints – just like Kassák’s oeuvre. Thus the identity that presents an organic unity with the museum’s primary collecting activity becomes personal without being exclusive; it is a flexible system where new themes could fit in if needed. Being personal and personality are key words in the world of communication and corporate identity design. A good visual identity provides individuality, communicates characteristic features and not only identifies the actual activity but also kindles interest, just like carefully selected attire that is appropriate for your personality and the occasion. A significant shortfall has been made up for in Hungary in the past two decades, but changealso began relatively late and rather slowly in the public institutional cultural sphere in more developed countries. It runs in parallel with the process of the institutions’ growing activities, referred to by critics as the commercialization of museums – and that is absolutely fair concerning identity. From being a church of knowledge, culture and the arts museums have become a sellable brand in a controlled and managed way, with all the positive and negative attributes. It does not harm its original task and functions, just as washing power would not be better or worse depending on the colour of its packaging – but if it is sold to more people because of a well appointed colour, the manufacturer will invest more in developing the brand, which sooner or later will be manifest in better quality. As with washing powder, there is competition for consumers interested in and willing to pay for culture. Identity in the communication pursued in this competition is not an exclusive nor even the most important part: the museum’s real activity and choice of events far outweigh that. The identity elements constitute its coherent and constant visual frame, the brand itself. But before creating a consistent identity, a museum, like a product to be launched on the market, has to answer many questions. Which part of its activity can be best communicated? What values, in the literal and figurative sense, is it devoted to and what values does it wish to communicate? What geographic, economic and cultural circle does its influence encompass and is it satisfied with this or is change required? Who (social position, age) does it want to address? Concrete answers help in numerous fields of a museum’s activity, besides creating its identity: from events connected to exhibitions through the friends of a museum to defining the range of goods in the museum shop, which are determined rather spontaneously in most Hungarian museums at the moment. It is worth selecting a partner with an eye to those answers: a national museum priding itself with collections of a regional or European significance cannot afford a low standard in this respect. In western countries the large institutions tend to have their visual image designed or updated by means of concrete commissions offered to global companies or with the help of invited applications. For smaller museums or in the case of part tasks an open tender or creative crowdsourcing can be good solutions – however, satisfactory remuneration is an important condition for success in both cases. It is advisable to build a long-term and balanced relation with the selected team of designers, which ensures further development of the brand, since the basic elements may require some cosmetic surgery every 7 to 10 years. What components make for a coherent identity system? The logo is most important and the basis of every identity. This is the most universal identity component; it must meet serious expectations, both theoretically and practically. A good logo cannot be mistaken for others, it distinctly refers to the institution it stands for, radiates uniqueness and personality; it can be used on billboards and as a Facebook profile picture, in colour and black and white, in printed format, on a screen, a mobile phone, moreover in 3D. The great classic of museum logos is that of London’s Victoria and Albert Museum designed by Alan Fletcher of Pentagram in 1989. A museum’s online and offline identity is basically built on the logo and optimally is created simultaneously and in the same place. It is the system of the visual elements that characterise the printed and digital contents connected with the museum.Is it possible to accomplish a comprehensive, complete identity renewal in Hungary similar, for example, to that of the Tate? Despite all initial scepticism, we can note that it is. However, with the exception of the Kassák Museum’s acknowledged identity, such comprehensive and consistent design can be hardly found among Hungary’s museums. With respect to logos even the largest institutions are a decade behind the times. The Hungarian National Museum still does not regard itself as needing something like that. Other museum logos recall the 1980s, such as those of the Budapest History Museum or the Petőfi Literary Museum show. (Does it cross anybody’s mind what they depict?) Without any axe to grind, MúzeumCafé could actually symbolise the change occurring these days. A high-standard, coherent identity is not only an economic necessity but also a duty – in today’s visual chaos the teaching role undertaken by museums must also extend to aesthetic quality. In addition, dozens of talented Hungarian graphic designers are waiting to be put to the test. The ball is in the museums’ court.