Astrae Studio’s tech-inspired identity for the Institute of Sport puts community before performance

Swiss sports performance brand On Running has partnered with Copenhagen-based concept store Grocery to launch Institute of Sport – a social sports club dedicated to the intersection of sport and community building. Rather than zoning in on PRs and perfect performance, the initiative aims to foster community, echoed in the type-forward and freckled identity designed by creative agency Astrae Studio, which uses various formations of scattered circles and text patterns to symbolise movement, and nods to the idea of groups of people practising sports. In addition to the ‘collective’ theme, the Copenhagen-based agency references On Running’s use of innovative technology and The Institute of Sport’s research work through the use of tech-inspired imagery – from the logo to the typographic choices. “The pixelated circle in the logo is actually inspired by a symbol we saw on the back of a grated parmesan cheese bag,” Co-founder Carl-Emil Storm Gabrielsen reveals, referencing the jagged, pixelated form. “We just liked the shape and thought it could work well with the font and the identity; and although it’s a bit far-fetched, it kind of fits with the more social, less performance based mission of the institute.” The identity also incorporates the typefaces Inter by Rasmus Andersson and Therma, a monospaced font custom designed by the studio, inspired by old industrial printers. “Therma has a technical feel to it that worked well with the science inspired direction,” explains Gabrielsen, while its stretched, blocky forms bear resemblance to fonts used in college varsity apparel, which, he adds, “is a strong symbol of community and sports.” To complement the low-key nature of the brand identity, the colour palette is restrained and includes a ‘fresh and optimistic’ light green that accompanies the central black and off-white pairing, rounding off the visual system.