POSTERS

TitlePOSTERS
BrandATAMIRA DANCE COMPANY
Product / ServicePOSTERS
CategoryB01. Posters
EntrantSAATCHI DESIGN WORLDWIDE Auckland, NEW ZEALAND
Entrant Company SAATCHI DESIGN WORLDWIDE Auckland, NEW ZEALAND
Advertising Agency SAATCHI DESIGN WORLDWIDE Auckland, NEW ZEALAND

Credits

Name Company Position
Shabnam Shiwan Saatchi Design Worldwide Creative Director
Josephine Ross Saatchi Design Worldwide Graphic Designer
Anushka Bihari Saatchi Design Worldwide Graphic Designer
Leah Surynt Saatchi Design Worldwide Graphic Designer
Rachael Jackman Saatchi Design Worldwide

Brief Explanation

To illustrate the uniquely Maori perspective represented by the company. The posters needed to be reflective of the work being promoted, place the Maori culture at the heart of the performance and strongly differentiated from the more traditional European dance forms.

The Brief

Atamira Dance Company is New Zealand leading Maori contemporary dance company. (The Maori are the indigenous people of New Zealand.) Its work is strongly focussed on reflecting a Maori perspective, and is rich in storytelling and symobolism. In the last year Atamira Dance company has toured the Continental USA, Hawaii, Australia and New Zealand.

How the final design was conceived

The body is the centrepiece of the performance and therefore the posters. The typeface is derived from the form of the dancers and the layout reflects a key differentiator in Maori dance – where ballet, for example, is about flight and grace, Maori dance is much more about strong solid forms, symmetry and repetition. The posters reflect this. The patterning used is reflective of the carving, tattoo, traditional clothing and weaving elements of the cultural palette. The type design strongly reflects these references. A unique typeface was developed to provide a strong graphic support to the imagery. The vertical arrangement of the type suggests rising spirits, the mono typeface creating a sense of vertical uplift. Atamira means stage. The logomark, the letter ‘A’ captures two domains where the circle represents the stage and the corner represents the audience. The outline brings the two together, as the performance joins the company and its audience.

Indication of how successful the outcome was in the market

The posters, as well as being visually distinctive, reflect the key differentiator of this unique dance troupe – strong solid forms of symmetry and repetition and distinctly Maori in origin.