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We The Curious

We The Curious

Client We The Curious Sector Public Destination Share LinkedIn Twitter Email
We helped create

Strategy
Brand Audit
Brand Architecture
Naming
Brand Identity
Identity System

Increasing Engagement in Science.

After a two-year consultation process with visitors and other stakeholder groups, the Bristol based science museum, @Bristol, had identified a number of issues with their name, including meaning, recall and even pronunciation. With their primary focus on children, they also wanted to do more to make science accessible to everyone, beyond the confines of traditional STEM subjects.

The brief, therefore, was to deliver on these objectives via the creation and definition of a proposition that communicated their ambitions for the centre – and following on from this, to create a new name and visual identity for @Bristol.

The proposition that we created for the museum was beautifully simple, placing curiosity firmly at the centre: “What if….?”

This tiny yet infinite question succinctly communicates everything from their ambition for the centre to the natural curiosity of a child, while at the same time remaining anchored in science with its limitless potential.

The concept of “What if…?” helped focus our search for a compelling name and acted as a benchmark for the entire creative process. It allowed us to challenge the viewer, asking them to question what they were seeing and unlocking their inquisitive natures.

The new name, “We The Curious” is part declaration, part call-to-action and embodies the desire to discover, experience and learn more about the world. It is inherently inclusive and alludes to the idea of building a movement or community around people who want to find out more about the world and their place in it.

The bold visual identity is a physical manifestation of this enquiring mindset: a series of bright, geometric shapes form the word curious. The process of discovery begins immediately, as the viewer is required to work out what the
shapes mean (a nearby We The Curious spelled out upside down – as with a crossword puzzle – is there to assist if needed!).

We worked together to think beyond the confines of a visitor attraction, museum or traditional science centre and couldn’t be prouder of what has been developed. The strategic thinking, name and visual identity are truly remarkable; it reflects our intention and ambition to create a culture of curiosity beautifully. We’re so excited to discover where ‘We The Curious’ brand can take all our curious minds.

The name change was tested with members, focus groups, volunteers and staff, testing 92% positive.

Following the launch, we had over three times as many followers on social media, as any other UK science centre.

We The Curious
Bristol, UK