MAPDA announces Winners & Highly Commended

2020 MAPDA Winners, Museums Australia Publication Design Awards, September 2020

The 2020 Awards Ceremony will be available to watch soon

BEST IN SHOW


PUBLICATION

National Gallery of Victoria
Petrina Hicks: Bleached Gothic
Designer: Thomas Deverall

Bold and elegant design with classic white end pages. The design sits gently and subtly behind the art with intentional quiet pauses of white space. Excellent treatment of the photography and lovely centred presentation – it is like a good salon hang. The book evokes the feeling of the exhibition well, and is overall an uplifting experience.

MULTIMEDIA

Museums Victoria
River Connections
Designer: Grumpy Sailor and Mike Daly, Matt Tillman, Brendan Woithe, Aunty Esther Kirby, Uncle Brendan Kennedy, Uncle Larry Walsh, Genevieve Grieves, Jess Hitchcock, Sarah Belkner, Tom Siddall, Matt Roberts.

Beautifully delivered. The animation was captivating and overall production values were of the highest standard. They wish it had been longer.


BOOK

LEVEL A
WINNER
Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū
Little Books of Art (series 2)
Designer: Aaron Beehre

​Confident. Each one stands alone or as part of the set. You just have to have them – very collectable.  

​LEVEL B
WINNERS
Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
Protest Tautohetohe: Objects of Resistance, Persistence and Defiance
Designer: Gideon Keith

​Protest Tautohetohe used great paper stock – it felt cheap, which is perfect and reflective of the ephemeral nature or the content. 

Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
Crafting Aotearoa: A Cultural History of Making in New Zealand and the Wider Moana Oceania
Designer: Alan Deare

The judges were impressed by the clever use of texture and embossed patterns on the cover and outstanding photography.


CHILDREN’S BOOK

LEVEL A
WINNER
Sydney Jewish Museum
I Met a Survivor
Designer: Audrey Larsen

​The book provides and innovative way to begin difficult conversations and intergenerational dialogue with kids. The photography in particular is engaging and well produced.

​LEVEL B
HIGHLY COMMENDED
National Gallery of Victoria, Discover the Terracotta Warriors
Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, Māui’s Taonga Tales: A Treasury of Stories from Aotearoa and the Pacific WINNER
National Library of Australia
Fauna: Australia’s Most Curious Creatures
Designer: Tania McCartney and Amy Cullen

​Visually engaging and appropriate use of infographics, art and text. Dynamic page layouts are a little overwhelming, but obviously a book for fun or reference for a range of ages. 


INVITATION

LEVEL A
HIGHLY COMMENDED
Dunedin Public Art Gallery, New NetworksWINNER
Newcastle Art Gallery
SODEISHA: connected to Australia
Designer: Belinda Street

​Really like the interactive sticker element. Receiving this feels like an event. Lovely use of colour to create an alluring invitation. Deals with standard design elements like supporter logos sensitively. Communicates clearly.

​LEVEL B
WINNER
Museums Victoria
Mini Mega Makers Workshop
Designers: Jess McGeachin, Maia Kjendle

​The interactive design is pitched perfectly. It is very cute and exciting – how wonderful to receive it. Lovely and classy use of gold. Good production values give it some longevity, increasing the effectiveness of the communication. Cleverly reflective of the event/workshop.


MAGAZINE

LEVEL A
WINNER
RMIT Design Archives
RMIT Design Archives Journal, Vol. 9, No. 2, 2019 Robin Boyd Redux
Designer: Stephen Banham

​Clean and disciplined with good attention to detail. 

​LEVEL B
HIGHLY COMMENDED
State Library of New South Wales, SL Magazine: Autumn 2019, Winter 2019, Spring 2019, Summer 2019–20
National Portrait Gallery, Portrait

INFORMATION BROCHURE

LEVEL A
WINNER
Museum of Brisbane
High Rotation Street Press
Designer: Chris Starr

INFORMATION BROCHURE

LEVEL A
WINNER
Museum of Brisbane
High Rotation Street Press
Designer: Chris Starr

​Designed for the people – totally Brisbane. The art direction and use of paper stock effectively create a nostalgic street rag feel but it feels up to date and fresh. Content is really cool and designed in an accessible, legible way. This will make a distinctive ongoing communication for the museum.


APP

LEVEL A
HIGHLY COMMENDED
Geelong Gallery, Orby—Geelong Gallery’s digital tour guide

INSTITUTION WEBSITE

LEVEL A
WINNER
Monash University Museum of Art
Monash University Museum of Art Website
Designer: Studio Round

​The grid layout and column structure is both flexible and creates cohesion across the site. Main site navigation is visually bold and easy to navigate. Nice use of images and social connectivity.


PROGRAM WEBSITE

LEVEL A
HIGHLY COMMENDED
Jewish Holocaust Centre, Ask a SurvivorWINNER
Museum of Brisbane
Brisbane Art Design
Designer: Liquid Interactive

Bold and fun aesthetic. Well considered layout displays key information clearly. Intuitive filters are well executed across all devices and makes browsing a large volume of events across multiple venues and dates feel easy and encourages exploration by venue, event type or date.

​LEVEL B
HIGHLY COMMENDED
Australian Museum, #CapturingClimateChange
Arts Centre Melbourne, Grand: Costumes from the Dame Joan Sutherland CollectionWINNER
Sydney Living Museums
Hyde Park Barracks website
Designer: Pollen

​Visual design is clean and sharp. The use of contemporary portrait photography for hero images brings a visceral human element that draws you in and creates a strong atmosphere. Clear hierarchy and structure deftly combines a digital experience of stories from the barracks alongside utility information about planning a visit and ticket sales. Visitor reviews provides good social proof and a sense of what to expect. Overall very easy to navigate and explore.


EXHIBITION BRANDING

LEVEL A
HIGHLY COMMENDED
Dunedin Public Art Gallery, New Networks
MOD., HEDONISMWINNER
Museum of Brisbane
Brisbane Art Design
Designer: Craig & Karl

Cool original font and logo design is delightful in its simplicity and has good street cred. Great opportunity for ongoing branding.

​LEVEL B
HIGHLY COMMENDED
Art Gallery of New South Wales, The essential DuchampWINNER
Museum of Contemporary Art Australia
Cornelia Parker
Designer: Claire Orrell

​Beautiful balance of two-tone colour palette. Elegant but cool. 


IDENTITY

LEVEL A
WINNER
Geelong Gallery
Geelong Gallery branding identity
Designer: David Pidgeon and Alex Ward

​The development of the icon for the institution has been very well considered and has created a distinctive element to be used as throughout all communication touchpoints. The individual elements are unexpected. The type, crop, and justification are really nice.


MULTIMEDIA

LEVEL A
HIGHLY COMMENDED
Museum of Brisbane, New Woman Interactive
Her Place Women’s Museum Australia and the Women’s Mural Documentation Project, Re-imagining the Women’s Mural – a virtual tour (open in Edge)WINNER
The Anzac Memorial
The Anzac Memorial’s Hall of Service digital interactive
Designer: Pollen Digital

​The interactivity is engaging and clearly directed. Immersive and dynamic way to present a lot of information. 

​LEVEL B
HIGHLY COMMENDED
National Museum of Australia, Talkin’ Guugu Yimidhirr
National Museum of Australia, Knowing Plants
Museums Victoria, What is a Fatberg?WINNER
Museums Victoria
River Connections
Designer: Grumpy Sailor

POSTER

LEVEL A
HIGHLY COMMENDED
Dunedin Public Art Gallery, New NetworksWINNERS
Museum of Brisbane
Brisbane Art Design
Designer: Craig & Karl

Good balance of elements and a bold use of yellow. The clever and cheeky design makes it engaging for a wide range of audiences. A great poster. 

Newcastle Museum
Exploding Heads
Designer: Headjam

​Great visual storytelling through well-produced images and bold colours. Brave use of the single logo, but ultimately very engaging. A striking and distinctive brand for Newcastle.

​LEVEL B
WINNER
Art Gallery of Western Australia
The Botanical Beauty and Peril
Designers: Madeleine DePierres and Jake Ransom

EXHIBITION CATALOGUE SMALL

LEVEL A
HIGHLY COMMENDED
Maitland Regional Art Gallery, Guns to Roses from the Maitland Regional Art Gallery Collection
Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū, Brent Harris: Towards the SwampLEVEL B
WINNER
National Portrait Gallery
Women in Vogue
Designer: Brett Wiencke

​The subject is treated with the respect and integrity that the brand deserves. The typography is strong with lovely surprises. The production is delightfully interesting and exciting with the use of multiple covers reflecting the content. Creates a physical journey which is engaging. Full bleeds are strong and confident and make a bold statement. Reflects the aesthetic of Vogue beautifully.


EXHIBITION CATALOGUE MAJOR

LEVEL A
WINNERS
Maitland Regional Art Gallery
Lucas Grogan | Long Story Short
Designer: Clare Hodgins

Sensitive colour palette is responsive to the art and helps to highlight the textural nature of the content. Lovely and consistent balance of type and images. Prioritising the artwork creates a sense of tactility which reflects the artist’s work effectively. Bloody beautiful. 

Monash University Museum of Art
Shapes of Knowledge
Designer: Stuart Geddes and Žiga Testen

The strength of the colour palette and design doesn’t distract from the art. The design is clearly in line with the curatorial intent of the publications. Lots of hidden delights through the bold use of colour and feature layouts. 

LEVEL B
HIGHLY COMMENDED
Museum of Contemporary Art Australia, Shaun Gladwell: Pacific UndertowWINNER
National Gallery of Victoria
Petrina Hicks: Bleached Gothic
Designer: Thomas Deverall

​Designed for the people – totally Brisbane. The art direction and use of paper stock effectively create a nostalgic street rag feel but it feels up to date and fresh. Content is really cool.