Corporate Design

Goethe-Gesellschaft Hochrhein

As a not-for-profit organisation, the Goethe-Gesellschaft Hochrhein promotes cultural life and literature. The focus and mission are Goethe’s spirit and work, which the organisation aims at conveying to a wide audience in organised lectures, study tours, exhibitions and theatre tours. The new corporate design of the organisation has turned the initial of this universal genius into a logo that is purposefully ambiguous in appearance. Featuring a clear and distinctive “G”, the form of the logo is reminiscent of a ginkgo leaf, Goethe’s favourite tree, but also of a heart or the abstraction of a clenched fist. Furthermore, this also turns the logo into a symbolic presentation not only of the emotional expressions that appear in Goethe’s work, but also of his creative phases as well as the various genres and fields of interest that he worked in. The colours adhere to the three motifs and subtly underline the texts and graphics, with the latter being inspired in their design by Goethe’s herbaria and his scientific work.

Statement by the Jury

The corporate design for the Goethe-Gesellschaft Hochrhein captivates with cleverness and stylistic simplicity. The fact that the logo, which is based on the initial “G”, allows for three highly distinctive readings is a great and outstandingly convincing idea. Complemented by three unobtrusive colours and subtly highlighted illustrations that take up the style of Goethe’s own drawings, this corporate design has emerged with a very harmonious appearance.

Red Dot: Best of the Best