Iconic Branding for Wellington Pride Parade 2024

by | Mar 5, 2024 | Clients, Hemisphere, Our work

Our task: To develop a brand identity that’s as vibrant and dynamic as the city’s rainbow community.

 

The Wellington Pride Parade is an important event to Wellington and Aotearoa. It’s the city’s chance to celebrate its long history of queer culture and bring the LBGTQI+ community together to stand up against inequality and injustice.

Since the Covid restrictions in 2020, the Pride Parade had been sadly missing from the Rainbow communities’ calendar of events. So, when a new Trust was formed to revive the parade, they asked Hemisphere to develop the brand identity.

Tim Antric, our Kaiarataki a proud member of the rainbow community, expressed his enthusiasm for this kaupapa: “Te Whanganui-a-Tara has always been a beacon of support and acceptance for our rainbow whānau. When we were approached to contribute to the revival of the Wellington Pride Parade, we saw it as a golden opportunity to celebrate our collective and individual identities. It’s a project that’s very close to our hearts.”

The refreshed branding for the Wellington Pride Parade, taking place on 9 March, is a celebration of Wellington’s unique spirit, inclusivity, and the rich Māori heritage that defines the city.

We wanted the logo icon to be something “uniquely Wellington”, so the bucket fountain on Cuba Street, known for its colourful and dynamic water display, emerged as the perfect symbol for the parade.

Tim highlighted the significance of water as a universal connector, mirroring the parade’s mission to unite diverse groups within the rainbow community. “Water is the life giver of all things, and just as it connects all of us to our origins, the Pride Parade connects us to each other,” he said.

The logo combines welcoming arms, streams of colourful wai (water) forming a rainbow, and a koru at the base, symbolising the community’s growth and vitality. The design reflects the connections between the human and divine, an integral aspect of the takatāpui community, with the pou āniwaniwa (rainbow post) in a wharenui representing the sharing of knowledge and history.

Craig Watson, from the Wellington Pride Parade Trust said, “Our logo is the perfect illustration of Wellington Pride Parade and its kaupapa. We celebrate our communities, the iconic Cuba Street foundation, and the welcoming arms we extend to all people.”