A love letter to Wales’ wild west
The organisers of Crug Mawr festival came to Wizardry looking for a new identity. The weekend event celebrates the Welsh language music scene in the beautiful and historic county of Ceredigion. The brief required the design to be bold and modern, but to incorporate elements of the rural culture and history of the area. Most importantly, the design needed to be recreated on site by volunteers.
A concept was developed around a series of bold icons, each of which has a story to tell. Some of these icons could be used to represent the main stages at the festival and others for waymarking.
Each icon has a story to tell about the local history, geography and culture of the area. For instance, the icon for one of the main stages, Sied Wair (hay shed) represents a bale of hay but is also inspired by common patterns used in Welsh blanket making. The Gloch Llanw depicts a tidal bell, a reminder of the ghostly bells of Cantref Gwaelod, a legendary lost city beneath the waves of Cardigan bay*
*The bells of Cantref Gwaelod (translation “The Sunken Hundred) are said to be heard along the Ceredigion coastline
The stitched logo is inspired by the long tradition of textile weaving in the area. Since the 17th century, farmers would bring their fleeces to mills like Melin Tregwynt, to be spun into yarn and woven into sturdy Welsh wool blankets*. The logo is based on a Folk Art typeface from P22 Type Foundry, with some modifications to cater for additional letters found in the Welsh language.
*The Welsh blanket has become a symbol of Wales and it’s reputation as a nation of sanctuary, a concept beautifully explored by artist Daniel Trivedy
To promote the festival, a series of social media posts were prepared. To announce the headline bands the icons were used as a framing device with the artists presented in duotone*. Ceredigion is one of the most beautiful parts of Wales with stunning beaches and bustling rural towns, so it was important to show the landscape at its best as a series of Instagram reels.
*This was inspired by local cult band Datblygu who often used duotone treatments in their album artwork
As the design assets were to be recreated on site, the colour palette was chosen to be bold and vivid, contrasted against a dark slate grey.
With a new start and a new brand identity, Crug Mawr Festival is now ready for it’s big comeback, as a home for the Welsh music scene in a wonderful rural setting.
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