Leeds College of Art brief

Capital North.

Background.
The government has recently revealed a strategy to develop the North of England
as a second economic capital in Britain to redress the economic balance across the
country and to compete on the world stage. They are calling this strategy Northern
Powerhouse.
The government believes that, by improving the transport infrastructure through HS3,
connecting Leeds to Manchester, and tapping into the huge potential of the North of
England, the North will become the globally significant economic force it has always
promised to be.
Great global cities have many attributes - access to a deep pool of human capital,
great jobs and businesses. Fast and effective transport connections. Strong
universities and hospitals, colleges and schools. They have the entertainment, the
green spaces, the housing, culture and sport that makes for a good lifestyle.
On a global scale northern cities are quite small and have individual strengths but
together they have the capacity to act as a global city. The concept of The Northern
Powerhouse builds on the idea that those cities, in a belt that runs from Liverpool to
Hull are stronger together, not as a rival to London, but to be its brother in arms in the
fight for Britains share of the global economy
Although HS3 will not be a reality until 2030, the idea already has significant impetus
and the process of connecting the major cities has already begun. Although, the
current government is driving this forward, the idea has been around for many years
and it is now fully accepted that this is the way forward for Britain.

The brief.
To brand the Northern Powerhouse and create awareness of its many and varied
attributes to the rest of the world.
Theres still a lot of uncertainty around the detail of how a Northern Powerhouse will
manifest itself, however for the moment lets assume the four cities that head up the
Powerhouse will be Liverpool, Manchester, Leeds and Hull which creates a nice neat
line across the North.
The idea requires a name and a brand, so that the world understands that this is a
significant single entity. After a consultation process with all the key stakeholders the
name Capital North has been selected - combining purpose and place. Its easy to
remember and recall.

Capital North. Continued

This is an identity project, very much about the craft and visual problem solving of
design. The brief and name is all sorted so theres nothing to distract you - concentrate
on working a big visual idea around the brief and producing beautifully crafted
elements.
Sweat the small stuff - we want you to work every element really hard. Not only should
the big idea be compelling but the way its brought to life, the attention to detail, the
way it looks should be beautiful and carefully considered.
When considering final solutions, avoid clichs and stereotypes. Rolling countryside,
regional dialects and visual shorthands are not appropriate here. This is not about
what its like to be in tNorth, its role is to attract interest and investment to a region
with an ambition to create prosperity to rival any economic power.
Organise yourselves into teams, numbering about 4 people in each. We want you
to work together to make decisions, to self edit, divide and conquer, and build the
presentation as a team with shared responsibilities.
Audience.
Our target audience is very broad - everybody and anybody, in the UK and abroad.
We need to spread the word about what a fantastic place this is to do business, to
invest in and visit. An area equal to London and major European cities in influence and
opportunity.
Deliverables.
To keep that focus on craft skills, technique and refinement, were limiting you to a
smaller number of applications. Only two are compulsory and choose another two
from a longer list.
Of course, if you have a burning desire to demonstrate an application over and above
those on the list wed love to see it. Dont be distracted though by producing lots and
lots of content - its the quality of thinking were interested in.
Mandatory applications.
The only two compulsory applications are numbers 1 and 2.
1. Logo
The key element that will be the building block of our identity.
2. Posters
A series of 4 posters - one for each key city. Theyll be posted in each of the key
cities to reinforce locally the importance of being stronger together.

Capital North. Continued

Additional applications.
Choose 2 further applications from the list below
3. Train livery.
The external facade of the train. If its travelling to and from London and spreading
the message of Capital North as it goes, what is it saying?
4. Train Staff Uniform.
Show us how the identity works on a smaller scale - how is it used in a subtle
way to create impact but still be appropriate and something which instils pride in
someone who wears it.
5. Taxi livery.
Not a black cab you might expect to see covered in advertising. If you got in
a taxi anywhere in Capital North what would it look like?
6. Environmental
How does the brand live in the city environment? How does it integrate into our
cityscapes, our communities, our architecture. How is the identity brought to life
everyday for the people of Capital North?
7. A Whats On App.
Tell us whats happening in Capital North. How do we do this in an innovative
and engaging way? Concentrate on the big idea and bring it to life in a succinct way
rather than too much detail on navigation architecture.
Timings.
Mon 2nd Feb 2015. 10.30am. Project kick off
Morning briefing/Q&A.
Weds 11th Feb 2015. 10.00am. Working day
A full day of attendance from the project team on-site at LCA to help
the teams develop their ideas.
Come armed with logo executions, supporting thoughts and ideas.
Friday 27th Feb 2015. 10.00am. Presentations and judging
Team presentations.