Project Overview
Balarinji was engaged by Austrade to design a Nation Brand Mark and graphics to raise the profile of Australian goods and services internationally and attract investment and visitors.
The Nation Brand Mark features Australia’s most recognisable symbol, the kangaroo, in a style that reflects a contemporary and authentic Indigenous Australian identity. This kangaroo tells the story of Country, of belonging and of living sustainably.
The kangaroo’s story began in the Dreaming when Spirit Kangaroos crossed the land, naming the rivers, valleys and hills. The kangaroo is central to the identity of cultural groups in every corner of Australia. Songlines follow the ancestral journeys of the kangaroo, they teach each new generation the stories of Country.
The kangaroo is bounding forward, reflecting Australia’s optimism. It is formed by a contemporary expression of three boomerangs. The head is the hooked ‘7’ boomerang used in ceremonies as a percussive, rhythmic instrument for song and dance.
The Mark represents contemporary Australian design excellence from an authentic and contemporary response to Country, informed by Aboriginal knowledge, stories and culture.
Project Commissioner
Project Creator
Team
Kungarakan man Toby Bishop, Graphic Designer
Yanyuwa man John Moriarty, Balarinji Chair and Cultural Director
Adam France, Senior Designer
Justine Cooper, Project Manager
Project Brief
Australian businesses and industry have long called for a strong and consistent nation brand to address a perceived ‘uncoordinated and fragmented’ approach by Australia on the world stage. The 2017 Foregin Policy White Paper recommended Australia develop a stronger nation brand.
The nation brand had to be recognised as quintessentially Australian, create pride among Australians, as well as have an innovative edge and sector-agnostic design.
Importantly, research showed the majority of Australians saw having an Indigenous design reflected in the nation brand as important.
Project Innovation/Need
This Nation Brand Mark is innovative as it is a first for Australia. A distinctively Indigenous logo that will brand the nation with our foundational story as Australians in the world.
Australia’s foundational Aboriginal narrative offers an original frame of thinking that has largely been missing from Australian design. It comes from a different worldview that is layered, complex and holistic.
The Mark represents the recognition of a contemporary Australia, one that is becoming increasingly open to its original cultural and spiritual lifeblood through equality and inclusivity.
The Mark is inspired by the concept of ‘yamulhu awara ambirriju’ from Balarinji co-founder, John Moriarty’s Yanyuwa language spoken by families in Borroloola, NT. It means ‘good country up ahead, good feeling for the future’. It's about Australia's rich Aboriginal heritage and the nation's irrepressible optimism.
The cultural magnitude of the Mark is immense as it marks a significant new way for Australians to identify ourselves as a nation that embraces our rich 60,000+ year-old Aboriginal heritage. It is groundbreaking and timely to have Australia engage the world in a fresh design approach that embraces and incorporates Indigenous culture so strongly and authentically within our national identity and to take it global.
Design Challenge
The nation brand had to be recognised as quintessentially Australian, create pride among Australians, as well as have an innovative edge and sector-agnostic design. Research had shown that the majority of Australians saw having an Indigenous design reflected in the nation brand as important.
The Mark Balarinji created features Australia’s most recognisable symbol, the kangaroo, and tells the story of Country, of belonging and of living sustainably. The choice of a kangaroo is intuitive. It is an effective national differentiator on a global scale represented in a style that reflects a contemporary and authentic Indigenous Australian narrative. The kangaroo is central to the identity of cultural groups in every corner of Australia.
The Mark is unambiguously Australian, domestically and internationally. The richness of the story underlying the Mark, enhances its power to communicate Australia as a modern nation with an ancient foundational story, and a rich, inclusive future.
The Mark has been proven to be appealing and appropriate for Australia’s nation brand. It tested exceptionally well in international and domestic market research and was considered representative of a modern, capable and inclusive country. The Mark was considered to have met the client’s brief and would add value to profile Australia in a new way to international audiences.
Effectiveness
The Mark has been very well received after it tested extremely well in international and domestic market research that showed it was considered representative of a modern, capable and inclusive country.
Testing via comprehensive independent international and domestic research shows measurable business success for the Mark. It is considered representative of a modern, capable and inclusive country. Testing feedback included:
- Internationally, it’s instantly recognisable and identifiable as Australian.
- t creates a sense of pride among Australians.
- Australian businesses like and endorse it.
- A wide range of businesses said they would use the new logo, with its innovative edge and sector-agnostic design.
- The majority of Australians surveyed see having an Indigenous design reflected in the nation brand as important.
This all points to the Mark being a beacon of positive change in Australia with a unique identity in the world that all Australians can share.
Graphic Design - Identity & Branding
This award celebrates creative and innovative design in the traditional or digital visual representation of brand, ideas and messages. Consideration given to clarity of communication, representation of brand values and the matching information style to audience.
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