The University of Pennsylvania has everything going for it. It’s one of the most elite institutions in the country. It was founded by Ben Franklin. It’s been educating students since before the United States existed. And it’s produced some of the most influential thinkers and leaders of all time.
Three Directions
1. Find A Way
Bold is revolutionary. This concept issued a challenge to the dreamers, builders, and activists of tomorrow: it’s up to you to find the way forward. Inspired by the revolutionary spirit of Philadelphia, the story was both a call to arms and an invitation to take action against passivity, carelessness, and stagnation.
2. Inventive
Bold is inventive. Inspired by the boundless curiosity of Ben Franklin, here we told the university’s story by showing how his spirit influences everyone at Penn. We focused on how Penn invites students to explore everything that captures their attention, as they work to invent new things on their own.
3. Without Fail
Bold is unapologetic. For this concept, we told the story of the Penn community and its appetite for taking on big challenges, unafraid of the risk of failure. Penn students are open to imperfections, false starts, and less-than-productive endeavors, because who they become is the result of their success and their failures.
Don’t be defined by just one ethos.
Bold is telling your story like nobody else can. Together, we drew on all three concepts to establish an honest, real brand that conveyed Penn’s positioning of interdisciplinary among a community of curious, creation-centered students. Ben Franklin was recast as the ultimate incarnation of Penn’s give-everything-a-try, don’t-be-defined-by-just-one-thing ethos, with trial and error as a natural part of the learning and growth process.
