Case Studies
A collaborative project blurring the lines between colour, sound, and design.
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“For the new generation of creatives, exposure to the possibilities of paper and print is sometimes limited, so this project provides a perfect opportunity to understand not only paper’s beauty and tangibility but also its power to communicate. These creatives are changing the design landscape as we know it, and GF Smith is more invested than ever in supporting them."
Vanessa Fletcher, Head of Next Gen Development at GF Smith
GF Smith Colorplan represents an exceptional achievement in paper making. Over the last 80 years, we have continually refined, perfected, and pushed the range to its limits.
Every one of its 50 colours, 25 embossings, and 10 weights is made sustainably in Great Britain. It can adapt to endless transformations, from business cards and boxes to record sleeves that are simultaneously works of art. It is available worldwide and is consistently beautiful on seven continents.
As a brand, we have spent decades thinking about colour, what it can signify, the ideas it invokes, and how it makes us feel. To broaden our scope further, we teamed up with music and sound design studio father in the summer of 2023, setting them the unusual task of developing a soundscape inspired by the (then) 55 colours of our Colorplan range. father created a distinct sound to reflect each of the 55 colours and used these sounds to compose pieces of music that now sit on a 12" vinyl album exploring the music of colour.
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In 2024, we turned to the new generation of creative talent enrolled in their 2nd and 3rd years at the BA (Hons) Graphic Design course at Manchester School of Art, setting a brief to create the cover art for this landmark piece, whilst challenging the students to turn their creativity towards the exploration of colour filtered through the lens of sound.
Over the course of 4 weeks the project transformed from 200+ submissions, to a shortlist of 30, culminating in a final selection of 10 designs by ten inspired and ambitious young creatives.
The ten designers, Adomas Lukas Petrauskas, Alice-Skye McEwen, Amelia Renny, Bradley Sansom, Connie Wooddisse, Harley Whitney, Ishita Garg, Lucy Michaela, Rupinder Kaur & Salem Ahmed, channelled their personal interpretation of the soundscapes created by father into distinctive designs that explored and crossed boundaries between creative disciplines.
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We partnered with Pressision in Leeds, UK, to produce the record covers. With their guidance and support on specification and production processes, we have ensured that each original design translates into a bold and expressive printed piece without losing its independent characteristics.