Accessible to a broad audience

One-in-five European adults has difficulty reading and writing. They face obstacles in their attempts to participate in modern society and often feel excluded. This is morally and economically unacceptable. In response, Princess Laurentien founded Stichting Lezen en Schrijven in 2004. The Foundation’s mission is to prevent and reduce literacy-related problems in the Netherlands and across Europe.

Broad public
Stichting Lezen en Schrijven asked us to breathe new life into their existing brand identity, with as key task increasing accessibility and recognisability amongst a wide audience. It was a challenge for us to address accessibility at every step of the process; but in the end it played a part in every aspect, from colour to typography.

Iconic style
An illustration style became the basis for the concept, constructed in a simple and iconic style with geometric shapes and flat areas of colour. With the idea that the image should always describe the message, we ensure that even those who can’t read will understand it. This is also where we got the idea for the logo, where the iconic eye and pencil symbolise ‘reading and writing’.

Human and accessible
Colour was also very important. To enhance recognisability and accessibility even further, we defined a colour palette that would appeal to everyone. Warm pink was added to give a human, accessible feel. The warm pink was created in five skin tones for use in illustrations of people in order to ensure a diverse public can be represented at all times.