I have worked on this project with Sehyr Ahmad in my junior year. In a meeting with Miss Laura who works with the staff managing Sharjah Biennial, we learned some problems that the Sharjah Biennial is facing. She has identified them as the indifference of the Sharjah population towards the event, the need to get a wider audience and people’s unawareness of this event being a celebration of the city and not only artists. Moreover, she added that this Sharjah Biennial included musical and dance performances. She has also discussed the “Sharjah Phobia,”- the fear of its traffic and complicated navigation- that discourages people living in other emirates from going to the Sharjah Biennial.

 

We have created the brand around visuals that simplify the route for people. Before the event, teasers with the red spot and the exact GPS coordinates are all over the town. Invitation cards are sent to people residing in Sharjah, Ajman and Dubai. These invitations act as maps to the Sharjah Biennial, and aid in familiarizing the people with the easy routes using their visual memory. Because we tend to throw away things very easily (I have chucked a dozen invitations and wedding cards in my life), we added a function to it. The invitation card becomes a simple, intimate office desk lantern with a tea candle lit in the center. The way we have cut pieces that project out give an interesting play with light.

 

On the day of the event, with the stickers on the rears of the cars, people will be reassured that they are on the right route when they're on the road, seeing other cars in front of them with the same sticker or even buses with the same route icon and colour.