The Government Office presents the visual identity of the Estonian EU Council Presidency

Today, the Government Office presented the visual identity and main messages of the Estonian Presidency of the Council of the European Union, introducing Estonia and the slogan of its Presidency through the concept of balance.

The identity of the Estonian Presidency, ‘Unity through Balance’, is the result of a joint competition held last summer by the organising team of Estonia’s centenary celebrations (Estonia 100) and the Presidency. The competition was won by the concept proposal ‘Century and Balance’ of the creative agency Identity (Meelis Opmann, Martin Tõnts, Ionel Lehari, Ants Lusti).

The design is based on two narratives ­- affinity for nature and an innovative digitalised society - that emerged over the course of public discussions on the Estonian brand, organised by Enterprise Estonia.

“These themes introduce the story and essence of Estonians through two very relevant issues: people’s relationship with the natural environment, and the challenges and opportunities that accompany new technologies,” Tiina Urm, the Head of Communications for the Estonian Presidency, said. “Striking a balance between protecting what is vital on the one hand and taking advantage of continuous development and new opportunities, on the other hand, is a challenge for Estonia, Europe, and the world at large,” Urm added.

“The image of balance aptly reflects our Presidency. Today, more than anything, Europe needs unity ­- in values, ideas and actions. To be able to advance Europe together and take full advantage of all possibilities for development, we must strike a balance between the various opinions, interests and visions of all member states,“ Urm noted. “This aim is reflected in the visuals of the Presidency, where the symbol of the Presidency connects and balances out different options and viewpoints.”

According to Ionel Lehari, the creative director of Identity, the simple and laconic graphic design is characteristic of the visual sign system that connects the twin identities of the Presidency and Estonia 100. “The design aims to create a geometric system from shared elements which allows to come up with graphic design concepts with different meanings for both identity programmes. A narrow rectangle and two circles are the building blocks for the Presidency’s symbol of balance, the symbol of Estonia 100 and the binary code pattern used by both,” Lehari explained.

While the Government Office already presented the visual identity of the Estonia 100 last autumn, the design for the Presidency had to wait until spring because, according to tradition, the incoming presidency reveals its visual identity only shortly before the start of the presidency.

You can read more on the creative competition: https://www.eesistumine.ee/en/news/winning-entry-creative-competition-th...

Further information:

Tiina Urm, Head of Communications for the Estonian Presidency, +372 56969306