Barcelona changes its image: this is the new City Hall logo

BarcelonaBarcelona City Council has been updating its image for 15 years. Now, the council has decided to make public its new corporate identity, that is, the graphic signature it will use from now on in all its communications. The objective of the new image, explain municipal sources, is "to put the city at the center, with the word Barcelona and accompanied by the city's official coat of arms at the end to "preserve the connection between the institution and the officialdom, but with a fresher and more versatile visual system that seeks to strengthen the bond with the citizens," they argue.

The new signature has black letters on a reddish background and also features other color derivatives that play with the same palette. The coat of arms remains intact, but in the new model it is located at the end of the logo.

The project was designed by the Principi studio, winner of a competition organized by the Association of Graphic Design and Visual Communication. The new brand aligns Barcelona with the trend adopted by many other major metropolises such as New York, Paris, Oslo, and Helsinki, which choose to sign their communications with the city's name.

According to the city council, Barcelona has a long tradition as a creative, innovative, and constantly evolving city; therefore, they assert, the update of the City Hall's visual identity "responds not only to technical or aesthetic criteria, but also to a strategic will." "The new design aims to position Barcelona as a city that cares for its image and projects its values both locally and internationally," argues the municipal team.

The new logo is designed to facilitate legibility, unify image criteria, avoid brand confusion, and flexibly adapt to different contexts. It also includes a reduced version with the letter B and the coat of arms that will be used for the districts.

The City Council explained that the new image will be available starting this Thursday, but "given the large number of spaces where this change will be required, its implementation will be gradual over the next few days."