Strong Cultural Character in the Visual Identity Design for IHA
Designer: gemasemesta.co
Client: Indonesian Heritage Agency
Scope: Brand Identity and Parent Branding System
The Indonesian Heritage Agency (IHA) was recently formed by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology (Kemendikbudristek) as a coordinating body between all state owned museums. Actualizing said project, the visual identity design began with the involvement of the Indonesian Association of Graphic Designers (ADGI) head office. Through the ADGI Hub program by the ADGI head office, a selection was conducted with the leadership of each ADGI Chapter as the candidates. Following a set of stages, gemasemesta.co, as the vice head of ADGI’s Jakarta chapter was chosen to be the designer in charge of designing IHA’s visual identity.
“So far, state-owned museums day to day operations are handled by each institution, so this initiative by the Kemendikbudristek to create IHA as a vessel that can later further the museums under them. In this project, we handled IHA’s brand identity and the parent branding system for all museums. Because of its role as a parent brand and its future implementation in other museums, we tried to build a system where the brand can be implemented adjacently,” Gema Semesta explained as the designer of this project. Aside from himself, there is also Shan Savero involved as a fellow designer.
Gema explained that the design idea took off from the concept of "Heritage" promoted by IHA in preserving Indonesia's cultural and historical heritage. Gema said, "When we started developing [the design], we took inspiration from several items from the Indonesian prehistoric period such as statues, Garuda figures, Pallawa script. So, we tried to form the silhouette of the logo from organic shapes and we tried to bring in prehistoric characters to symbolize its heritage."
"For the color palette of the brand, we also took inspiration from bronze, which is one of the materials commonly found in heritage objects. Bronze that is aged for a long time will develop a patina layer as it oxidizes. So, we took that bronze shade into a patina color as the identity. We also developed graphic elements from silhouettes based on historical remnants. We tried to create a pattern composed of silhouettes to bring out the cultural character onto the supergraphics," Gema elaborated further on the visual identity design.
Gema emphasized that through designing this visual identity, he wanted to convey Indonesia's strong culture and package it in a relevant and modern flare. “Through IHA, we tried to combine cultural elements that Indonesia has. But, we try to package it in a modern way, so that it can elevate and give [the design] a breath of fresh air," said Gema. After going through various developments, this design was accepted and succeeded in bringing something new to the realm of government.
The IHA identity designed by gemasemeta.co is very eclectic and not at all monotonous. gemasemeta.co has succeeded in presenting something from the past, chock full of historical value, in a modern and very organic packaging. This makes this design very different, unique, and can stand out when compared to the logo of a museum or similar government institution. Silhouettes and curves taken from various forms of statues, statues and historical paintings are painted into an attractive and professional visual identity with a slightly "mysterious" impression.