Front and back of the original London, British Empire Games 1934.
Research I started with finding out as much as I possibly could about the Commonwealth Games and its history. During the research period I learnt a lot about the sports that were involved. Along with the fact that London is the home of the games and hasn’t held the event since 1934, when it was called the British Empire Games. After finding out this crucial piece of information, I managed to stumble across some footage online of the last London commonwealth games that could also be used at a
later time. Once I felt I had enough knowledge on the event trying to find out about the current branding of the CGF was next on the agenda. This led me to contacting the CGF by email and soon after being pointed in the direction of there current branding document found on the official website. Finding this allowed me to have a lot more structure when it came to planning how I would be approaching the Branding for the Games.
Brainstorming Due to the location of this project I wanted to get an outsiders perspective on what they recognise as a symbol of England and London. This led me to creating two moodboards consisting of everything and anything to do with the Country / City. Thanks to these mood boards it did make my life a lot easier when it came to actually sketching up logo ideas.
A w e e k l a t e r. After some light searching online I was recommended a book called Love Design Love. This book was all about how to come up with branding ideas and how industry professions go about approaching work for a client. This is how I wanted to go about my project. Due to this, one approach that was present in a quotes from designers was to stay away from computers.
So for one week I stayed away from computers and just sketch every and any design that came to mind for the Logo to represent London 2026 Commonwealth Games. After doing so I had some good, bad and ugly ideas but it did help and I managed to have three Logos to develop from this.
The Chosen Few After the week of sketching I decided it was about time that I took a couple of the stronger designs into illustrator. Then develop them as far as I could and hopefully end up with a Identity for the London, Commonwealth Games Event.
Above: Scans of the original sketches
Above: Different experimentations
T H E 9 REGIONS OF ENGLAND
USING THE POINTS TO MAKE A SHAPE
COMBINING THE POINTS AND THE SHAPE THAT WAS CREATED.
MAPPING THE REGIONS OF ENGLAND
MAP OF THE REGIONS OF ENGLAND
COMBINING THE POINTS AND THE SHAPE THAT WAS CREATED.
USING BLACK TO MAKE THE SHAPE THREE DIMENTIOINAL
POTENTIAL LOGO DESIGN FOR THE COMMONWEALTH
WAS CREATED.
COMBINING THE POINTS AND THE SHAPE THAT WAS CREATED.
Logo Values LL Bringing attention to the fact its being held in England not the United Kingdom LL Uniting all the regions of England. ( Sadly not Kent) LL Metaphor - Bringing everyone together in one place.
POTENTIAL LOGO DESIGN FOR THE COMMONWEALTH
DIMENTIOINAL
LOGO TWEAKS
Tweaking After receiving feedback I went back to my final logo (seen on the page before) and kept making small adjustments until I felt it couldn’t be tweaked anymore
Typorangement
LONDON 2026 COMMONWEALTH GAMES C ANDIDATE CIT Y
2026
COMMONWEALTH GAMES C ANDIDATE CIT Y
ONDON
COMMONWEALTH GAMES C ANDIDATE CIT Y
ONDON 2026
COMMONWEALTH GAMES C ANDIDATE CIT Y
Due to the shape of the final logo, I started incorporating type into the final composition. The Composition seen in the top left is the one that I took forward as it had the strongest image as well as it meeting the requirements of the CGF Branding manual.
Gathering Due to the nature of my project, I wanted to get some primary images that I would be able to incorporate other design elements into hence the compositions. Along with this I wanted to get a better feel of London and see what tourists were looking at most. During my time in central I was also taking notes of different typefaces that I could possibly use later on.
T T T T
H H H H
E E E E
Q Q Q Q
U U U U
I I I I
C C C C
K K K K
B B B B
R R R R
O O O O
W W W W
N N N N
F F F F
O O O O
X X X X
J J J J
U U U U
M M M M
P P P P
S S S S
O O O O
V V V V
E E E E
R R R R
T T T T
H H H H
E E E E
L L L L
A A A A
Z Z Z Z
Y Y Y Y
D D D D
O O O O
G G G G
T T T T
H H H H
E E E E
Q Q Q Q
U U U U
I I I I
C C C C
K K K K
B B B B
R R R R
O O O O
W W W W
N N N N
F F F F
O O O O
X X X X
J J J J
U U U U
M M M M
P P P P
S S S S
O O O O
V V V V
E E E E
R R R R
T T T T
H H H H
E E E E
L L L L
A A A A
Z Z Z Z
Y Y Y Y
D D D D
O O O O
G G G G
T T T T
H H H H
E E E E
Q Q Q Q
U U U U
I I I I
C C C C
K K K K
B B B B
R R R R
O O O O
W W W W
N N N N
F F F F
O O O O
X X X X
J J J J
U U U U
M M M M
P P P P
S S S S
O O O O
V V V V
E E E E
R R R R
T T T T
H H H H
E E E E
L L L L
A A A A
Z Z Z Z
Y Y Y Y
D D D D
O O O O
G G G G
T T T T
H H H H
E E E E
Q Q Q Q
U U U U
I I I I
C C C C
K K K K
B B B B
R R R R
O O O O
W W W W
N N N N
F F F F
O O O O
X X X X
U U U U
M M M M
P P P P
S S S S
O O O O
V V V V
E E E E
R R R R
T T T T
H H H H
E E E E
L L L L
A A A A
Z Z Z Z
Y Y Y Y
D D D D
O O O O
G G G G
T T T T
H H H H
E E E E
Q Q Q Q
U U U U
I I I I
C C C C
K K K K
B B B B
R R R R
O O O O
W W W W
N N N N
U U U U
M M M M
P P P P
S S S S
O O O O
V V V V
E E E E
R R R R
T T T T
H H H H
E E E E
L L L L
A A A A
Z Z Z Z
Y Y Y Y
D D D D
O O O O
G G G G
F F F F
O O O O
X X X X
London Type After taking the primary photographs in London I noticed a new different San-serif typefaces used around that I could see being used along side my Logo. Typefaces by row: Futura, Johnston Underground, Akzidenz Grotesk, Gill Sans, Effra.
J J J J J J J J
C ANDIDATE CIT Y
Gill Sans Regular
LONDON 2026 COMMONWEALTH GAMES C ANDIDATE CITY
Gill Sans Semi Bold
LONDON 2026 COMMONWEALTH GAMES CANDIDATE CITY
P22 Johnston Underground/ Regular
LONDON 2026 COMMONWEALTH GAMES CANDIDATE CITY
P22 Johnston Underground/ Bold
LONDON 2026 COMMONWEALTH GAMES CANDIDATE CITY
Akzidenz Grotesk Regular
LONDON 2026 C O M M O NW EALTH GAM E S CAN D I DATE C ITY Akzidenz Grotesk Medium
LONDON 2026 C OM MON W EALTH GAM E S CAN DI DATE CIT Y
Effra Medium
LONDON 2026 COMMONWEALTH GAMES CANDIDATE CITY Effra Bold
LONDON 2026 COMMONWEALTH GAMES CANDIDATE CITY
Helvetica neue Bold Futura Medium
LONDON 2026 LONDON 2026 COMMONWEALTH COMMONWEALTH GAMES C ANDIDATE CITY CIT Y CANDIDATE Helvetica neue Bold Futura Medium
LONDON 2026 COMMONWEALTH GAMES CANDIDATE CITY
LONDON 2026 COMMONWEALTH GAMES C ANDIDATE CIT Y
T y p e Ta s t i n g I wanted to get a better visual taste for each of the Typefaces that are recognised for being used around London. After testing out these fonts I felt the strongest was Futura Medium thanks to the shape joints on the typeface.
Helvetica neue Bold
Customised Futura Medium was the strongest typeface from the tests but as its such a widely used font I wanted it to be custom to the event. I used Futura Medium as the bones of the typeface and styled it using the shapes from the Logo. I intentionally designed it in this way so that when shrunk down for small print the font comes across as Futura Medium making it more legible.
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 FUTURA MEDIUM
CUSTOM VERSION OF FUTURA MEDIUM
THE QUICK BROWN FOX JUMPS OVER THE LAZY DOG
The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog 1234567890
Colour Palette BL ACK
WHITE
TRIUMPH YELLOW
BL ACK
WHITE
P M S 13 7
C M Y K : 0. 0. 0. 10 0.
C M Y K : 0. 0. 0. 0.
C M Y K : 0. 3 4. 91. 0.
R G B : 0. 0. 0.
R G B : 2 55. 2 55. 2 55.
R G B : 2 55. 2 0 4. 51.
TRUE RED
H E R I TA G E B L U E
P M S 18 6
P M S 3 0 05
C M Y K : 0. 91. 76 . 6 .
C M Y K : 10 0. 3 0. 0. 6 .
R G B : 2 0 4. 0. 0.
R B G : 0. 15 3 . 2 0 4.
This is the compulsory colour palette to be used with the logo and the commonwealth games. The colours represent Humanity, Destiny and Equality and are not only the colours used by the commonwealth but they have also been adopted by the Olympics. LL These are the only colours to be used with the Commonwealth Games.
100%
90%
Acceptions 80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
Due to the colour palette being fixed, I believe that these accept-ions can and should be used throughout the identity other then the logo. This way it allows a lot more styling opportunities thought out the project. LL Only 10% increments in opacity can be used outside of the colour palette.
Te s t i n g Due to being given the colour palette by the CGF brief and reading the book previously mention, I felt that the logo needed to be tested in different colours and background colours to make sure it was Legible. LL Your are not allowed to use any other colour on a white background. LL Your only allowed to use the white logo on flat colours.
LONDON 2026 COMMONWEALTH GAMES C ANDIDATE CIT Y
LONDON 2026
LONDON 2026 COMMONWEALTH GAMES C ANDIDATE CIT Y
LONDON 2026 COMMONWEALTH GAMES C ANDIDATE CIT Y
COMMONWEALTH GAMES C ANDIDATE CIT Y
LONDON 2026 COMMONWEALTH GAMES C ANDIDATE CIT Y
LONDON 2026 COMMONWEALTH GAMES C ANDIDATE CIT Y
Colouring In Now that I was onto the colour testing side of the project. I needed to start working out how I would incorporate the Colours into my Logo. As it has 4 sides to the Logo it make sense for each to have its own colour. Circled is the colour combination I chose to take forward not only are the colours in symphony with each other but it also follows the order from the CGF bar that it will be sitting on. Therefore keeping everything in sync.
LONDON 2026 COMMONWEALTH GAMES C ANDIDATE CIT Y
LONDON 2026 COMMONWEALTH GAMES C ANDIDATE CIT Y
The Logo After combining all the elements of my development, the chosen type face, colours and composition this is the final outcome of them and all elements of the design meet the branding guidelines set out by the CGF.
GLA
ND
EALTH W N
EN
GLA
ND
COMMO
EN
COMMO
COMMO
COMMO COMMO
GLA
ND
GLAND
EALTH W N
EN
MES GA
EN
EN
MES GA
EALTH W N
MES GA
COMMO
GLA
ND
EALTH W N
MES GA
EN
EALTH W N
MES GA
MES GA
EALTH W N
GLAND
COMMO
EN Number 2 Due to reading the branding document again, I noticed that there had to be a second Logo that was to be used on the nations team. After a few tries, seen on the page before I ended up going back to my sketchbook and used this doodle to make up my final Emblem.
MES GA
A LTH E W N
GLA
D N
more photos of London and Advertising spaces for this projects Mock-ups.
Pictograms for the London 2026 Commonwealth Games.
Pictograms Whilst having a look at previous Commonwealth Games and other sporting events they all had pictograms. Therefore I went ahead and designed my own, each pictogram had at least 7 steps in developing the Image (26 x 7 = 182 sketches ). Each pictogram is styled following the theme of the font and the logo.
Testing possible applications of the Pictograms.
Other applications Now that I have a good quantity of different development work, I felt it was about time I started looking at real life applications of my resources. After tests I found that white Pictogram had the best visibility on the majority of backgrounds. In the rare instance that the white isn’t pungent enough you may need to darken the background very subtly.
Possible logo sculpture made from brass along the Thames.
Still from Cinema 4D animation : https://vimeo.com/160595671
Hypothetical As part of the identity of the event these perspex tokens could be memorabilia sold at each of the events. Giving people an addition incentive to attend more events to get the whole collection?.
Light up perspex cut outs of the London 2026 Pictograms
Trophies/ Awards for the Commonwealth Games.
Potential Medal design for the London Commonwealth Games based on the original British empire games medal. Uniting the past and present.
Possible Gold, Silver and Bronze medals for the games.
So Far The project so far has been interesting from start to finish. To start the project off I had to find out about the commonwealth games, as it was a event that I had never really paid any attention too. During the research period this was when I came across the date 1934, when the games was last held in London under the name of The British Empire Games. This was the nail in the coffin as this meant that London has never held the Commonwealth Games. There were two main stages that were the most challenging. The first stage was coming up with the Logo for the event, as this would be the beacon of the games. I spent a whole week only sketching Ideas whenever one came to mind and at the end I had the three sketches to move forward with (shown previously). It was only after developing and experimenting with each of the sketches that I finally allowed myself to decide on my final logo. The second stage was the harder of the two, designing the pictograms. Originally when I started researching the different icons over the years I thought it might have been an easy task, how I was miss lead. During the research stage of looking at pictograms I came across two videos of how Glasgow and Rio came up with there designs. This was how I approached my pictograms using the Logo as the stylistic influencer for them. Due to this I wanted to make each of the pictograms as legible and recognizable. So this lead me to having to use layout paper over each sketch, because of this each pictogram had at least 10 different versions. Causing it to extremely time consuming. Forcing me to have another week away from the computer. Due to the process I took towards the designs, I feel the outcomes are as good as can be. A lot of thought, research and development has gone into each and every design, allowing me to be able to defend and present my work with passion. All in this entire project has allowed me to progress from a student into a designer. A lot of additional Ideas are still to come but what will be produced is still a mystery. The potential outcomes that I have in mind are merchandise, posters or even a video promoting the event and bringing all the elements together.