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Stealing a glimpse from Dutch Master paintings with an Annual 2021 Bronze winner | #AnnualSpotlight

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The Annual 2021 winners have been revealed over summer, with some of the most exciting companies in the history of Creativepool. With a gorgeous Branding project which was well worthy of a Bronze, Range Left was able to secure an award for the second year in a row, back after a Bronze and People's Choice in The Annual 2020.

The Botanical Lofts branding by Range Left is nothing short of beautiful. With detailed flowery motifs and a very precise colour range, this fascinating project pairs the modern typeface with the style of Dutch Master paintings. The result is stunning, as a simple glimpse at the interview below can demonstrate.

In this Annual 2021 Spotlight, we are learning more about how Range Left was able to impress the judges with this project, as well as some more details about the company's approach to creativity.

View The Annual 2021 Winners!

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Tell us about your winning submissions! What do you think impressed the judges?

The main aspiration for our design was to create something that not only got to the essence of the project overall as well as answering the client’s brief directly, but also which gave the client and the client’s audience a simple but pleasurable aesthetic to look at.

What felt unique about taking part in The Annual?

Any participation in the curation of good design is a special thing. Creativepool Awards feel unique in that they are aimed at designers of all levels. It doesn’t matter whether you’ve been in the industry 3 months or thirty years, you get an equal chance to shine—and by participating—to also review and appreciate other entrants’ brilliance too.

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If you could name one reason that made you choose to enter this year, what would it be?

We entered the competition to gauge what our peers thought of the designs which had worked well for our clients; it’s always good to hear opinion from different kinds of audiences. It’s also interesting to see what other amazing entries have been submitted, especially in categories which aren’t our ‘home turf.’ It’s inspirational.

How do you plan to display your award?

The award will be put somewhere where the team can see it. It’s their award for creative input, so it’ll reside on a ‘collective mantelpiece.’

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Will you enter again in 2022? If so, what are your hopes?

Yes, we will enter in 2022. It’s a pleasure to be part of such a gathering of talent. It’s eye opening to see what other sectors of our industry are producing.

What advice would you share with other agencies and individuals looking to grab an award?

My advice would be to simply submit the exact design that you have created for your client, without any need to dress it up or make it ‘show ready’ in any way. If your client has pushed you and you have pushed yourself, your originality and the challenges you have overcome throughout the project will shine through for all to behold (including the viewing public, the ultimate judge of a design’s success).

How does winning awards such as The Annual impact your business?

The award impacts the business in many ways. It’s a badge of honour for us and for our clients (not just the client commissioning the awarded project, but also those who are associated with us via other projects and are pleased to have commissioned us as a recognised agency). It gives a feelgood factor all round. But most importantly, it is great for studio morale. It’s a recognition of the graft and the ethos that goes into a successful project by all of those who’ve had involvement, in whatever capacity. Of course there is a core of designers sat together in a room working on the project, but there is also an extended group of ‘friends and family’ involved too—whether that’s a person creating great CGI imagery, copy, or other elements that contribute to our overall design. It’s always easier to produce a great recipe when you have high quality ingredients. Sometimes simply giving subjective opinion on the designs that we’ve created is key. I find it helps to ask my family and other trusted individuals who aren’t totally immersed in the design brief itself what they think of our efforts. Those opinions can help steer the final aesthetic as they represent the voice of those who will ultimately view and judge our design (i.e. the public). So their involvement deserves recognition too. To answer the question in short, I suppose being able to put a smile on anyone’s face, whether they’ve commissioned the brief or helped resolve it, is what impacts the business the most, because it gives us good reason for what we are doing and reminds us why we chose to do it as a vocation and continue to love doing it.

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This year’s winners are a testament to the power of creativity in hardship. How did Covid restrictions influence your winning projects and how did you approach these new challenges?

We are very lucky to have a range of diverse clients who have been able to pull through the restrictions and challenges of last year. We had no magic formula, just hard work and ongoing acclimatisation to different working methods. I think that’s all anyone ever has. A bit of good luck has helped us too – which many less fortunate companies haven’t had on their side over the past few months.

What are your hopes for the industry in 2022 and beyond?

We have found that one silver lining from the restrictions and the changing working methods has been that we are all far more used to liaising directly with more diverse international clients ‘face-to-face’ via Zoom, Teams, etc. We are now as comfortable presenting to an international client as we were presenting ‘in person’ in a traditional boardroom scenario. I think that this newfound accessibility to direct designer-client dialogue really helps with the diversity and the creative dynamic of the industry as a whole.

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What is your most exciting project in the next year?

We are lucky enough to have a wide and far-reaching client base. Therefore we have a lot of exciting projects coming to us from different industries and different parts of the world over the coming months. Each is exciting in its own way, whether commissioned by a startup or by a known superbrand. Perhaps the most exciting project we have is defining and expanding our own studio, approaching the wonderful and creative projects that are coming our way from an increasingly widespread and eclectic client base. It’s hard to predict beyond the next few months what other projects will come our way, let alone what the most exciting one will be during the coming year. Imagine predicting the next 12 months back in December 2019! But suffice to say there is a definite positivity in the air—and that is a great for our creativity as well as for the industry as a whole.

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