The Malvern Festival of Ideas is a multidisciplinary festival, held annually in Malvern, Worcestershire. It celebrates the convergence of various ideas and perspectives.
Our friends and partners at iD Creative Design in Malvern had mentioned attending the festival in years past and were impressed by the range of speakers and breadth of topics.
When the festival put out an open call for a new brand identity and website, we decided to work together on a proposal that the festival team liked enough to talk to us further.
Having worked together on various projects in the past, inlcuding a similar collaboration for the British Association for Sustainable Sport (BASIS), we know two heads can be better than one on a project like this. Our partnership brings an additional layer of quality, capacity and attention to detail to projects like this one, tying together print and offline assets with online design language and usability for a consistent, memorable brand experience both on and offline.
Branding and Visual Identity
iD Creative Design worked collaboratively with the Malvern Festival of Ideas team to create the new brand identity. Ethical Pixels worked hand-in-hand with them to recommend digital aspects that would translate this fresh identity into a cohesive and impactful online design language. They provided print assets for a launch event and comprehensive brand guidelines for other suppliers to use in different mediums.
The website
Given the festival would occur every year, we wanted to create a site that would stand the test of time, evolving through seven distinct stages reflecting critical milestones of the festival, such as speaker announcements and ticket sales. Post-festival, the website seamlessly archives the year’s content, making room for the announcement of new themes and details for upcoming events.
Ethical Pixels developed a unique data architecture tailored to the festival’s needs, including specialised data points for themes, sessions, speakers, and venues. The design emphasises the interrelationship between these data points, enhancing user experience and engagement.
Accessibility was a key focus, with the site being designed to meet WCAG 2.2 Level A standards, ensuring it is accessible to a broad audience.
Key features
Adaptive Homepage
The homepage’s ability to transition through different stages at the flip of a switch is not only a technical feat but also a strategic design choice, keeping the website fresh and relevant throughout the festival cycle.
Archiving System
This feature ensures that the website remains a living archive of the festival’s history, while also maintaining a focus on upcoming events, enhancing both historical value and forward-looking relevance.
Simplified Content Management
The backend is designed for ease of use, allowing festival organisers to update content effortlessly, emphasising reuse and straightforward editing.
Integration
The website integrates smoothly with an events booking system and a mailing list, streamlining user interactions and information dissemination.
Finally, we managed the entire transition process, including domain configuration and email migration, ensuring a smooth changeover from the old site, in time for a tight deadline.
