In my ten plus years of journey at KAUST, I had the opportunity to work on different projects such as: improving the KAUST logo, the University visual identity, annual reports, high-level publications, promotional items, high delegates gifts, the branding of employees’ anniversaries awards, the fifth-anniversary identity, and department’s branding and many other projects.
KAUST’s motto, “Through inspiration, discovery”, was the inspiration to handle any design/branding projects in the Design Team. An in-house of multinational design unit that I helped in creating to manage all KAUST’s branding & marketing projects.
More than 15 talented designers (from Saudi Arabia, Ukraine, Germany, South Africa, Lebanon, United States, Jorden, Egypt, and France) have collaborated to create KAUST’s brand, to stand out with its unique & creative identity the first decade of existence.
Enhancing KAUST logo
Before 2015, the KAUST’s primary logo was off-balance because of the logotype’s size comparing to the logomark. This caused the logo to be unpractical and hard to read the University’s name when the University was young to be recognizable by the logomark only. Additionally, the logomark had 6 lines, which looked strange on a small scale. Plus, the color of the text was light gray, which made it even harder to read.
In mid of 2015, I was asked by the President’s office to find a solution that fixes the readability and a more practical version of the logo without losing changing any elements of the logo/identity.
My solution was to reduce the logomark, replace the 6-lines with 4-lines, and change the text’s color to a darker gray. This kept the overall look of the logo but made it more reliable and effective.
Branding Guidelines
In addition to updating all the branding elements and removing outdated information/assets :
All new typeface (Arabic & English), Promotional items design – a new line of merchandise, Branding assists – PowerPoint & Word templates, forms, and letterheads, Video and digital media graphics, Business cards templates, Social media graphics, and templates.
The final document is an interactive PDF with live links to download assets and links to useful tutorials.
Welcome to KAUST
The “Welcome to KAUST” Guide is a resource to help community members find information about different topics of day to day life on campus. My role was to create the visuals for the app which included iconography, banners, and the look and feel.
KAUST Five Years Anniversary
The logo and identity of the celebrations of KAUST five years. The work included the logo, marketing collateral, branding, and art direction.
Cultural Heritage Identity
Series of Lectures about Cultural Heritage with a focus on the archaeology of Saudi Arabia.
Limited-edition T-Shirts
Both artworks were created to reflect the local culture with custom made calligraphy and KAUST’s Beacon. One calligraphy was the motto of the University (Through Inspiration, Discovery).
Matjar identity
Being part of the creative team that came up with KAUST’s gift shop name, Matjar (Store), back in 2012, was motivational for me to design the first Matjar logo that lasted till 2019.
In 2017-2018, and with the repositing of the store, a new logo and identity were created.
The Academy – KAUST Young Talent Academy
The project included the logo, Identity, branding templates, and website design.
KAUST Virtual
A customized virtual identity for the online presence of The Strategic National Advancement Department at KAUST.
The identity was developed with “practical, effective, and easy to use” in mind. The works included the logo, colors, PowerPoint templates, and social media bundles with guidelines and a manual on all assets.
KAUST’s High Delegates Expo
Portable museum-like stands with sleek, modern, and futuristic artworks showcasing selected highlights and research.
Sci-café Identity
Sci-Café is a lively and interactive discussion between KAUST scientists and community members that highlights a different research area each month, held in a casual setting.
KAUST/NESMA
KAUST and Nesma Holding celebrated the inauguration of the Thuwal Embroidery Center under the patronage of HRH Prince Badr bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz, the deputy governor of Makkah Region.
