CityLeaks Publication: An urban art festival in the center of Europe
Creative Direction
Since 2011, every two years, Cologne’s streets and walls have been redesigned by artists worldwide in a festival of urban art. The plan is to make its citizens and visitors reevaluate how they interpret the urban space around them. This is CityLeaks, an urban artistic NGO planned by the Cologne-based art association Artrmx. To document the 2017 festival was created and compiled a publication, in which Humana was invited to make the editorial design.
Creative Direction
Since 2011, every two years, Cologne’s streets and walls have been redesigned by artists worldwide in a festival of urban art. The plan is to make its citizens and visitors reevaluate how they interpret the urban space around them. This is CityLeaks, an urban artistic NGO planned by the Cologne-based art association Artrmx. To document the 2017 festival was created and compiled a publication, in which Humana was invited to make the editorial design.
The fourth edition of the CityLeaks Urban Art Festival, entitled “Sharing Cities” set out to explore the public space of Cologne's northern city center around Ebertplatz. The activities focused on a variety of possibilities for rethinking and re-enacting urban environments as ordinary spaces. To summarize and preserve the memories of the fourth edition of CityLeaks, Humana worked closely with festival organizers to design the publication. The goal was to give a contemporary way that could feel dynamic and meaningful. The intention was that the publication could be seen as one piece rather than the documentation of many projects.
A powerful tool in art education
The design infuses layouts with stylish photography captured during the festival to provide the reader with additional content. It compiles artworks, murals, interventions, and performances combined with academic texts from cultural scientists. The templates offer freedom to utilize illustrations and photography, fostering a dialogue between the visuals and the written parts. Also, different typography sizes were applied to provide a distinct voice for each section.
This publication assembles to tell the stories of the 2017 CityLeaks Festival. It's the representation of artistic and theoretical motivations to reorganize urban spaces and promote greater participation in the design of the urban environment. These bespoke stories are clearly expressed by the editorial design we idealize.
