Struckmann Studio Designs a New Concert Format for Copenhagen Phil
Seasonal events give cultural institutions a way to reach new audiences — but the visual identity risks drifting from the main brand if it moves too far. For Copenhagen Phil's Valentine's concert at Radiohuset, Struckmann Studio developed "Phil In Love" as a standalone concert format with its own visual identity. The programme pairs symphonic works by Prokofiev and Mahler with pop covers of Beyoncé, Kate Bush and Rosalía — a combination that required a visual language belonging to neither genre alone.
Phil In Love was conceived not as a one-off campaign but as a new concert format aimed at a younger audience alongside Copenhagen Phil's existing base. The challenge was to deviate visually from the orchestra's established identity without disconnecting from it.
“We worked with a deliberate departure in the stylistic expression, making the identity more contemporary and sensorial in its form, while preserving selected classical elements as a reference to the brand's existing identity and values.”
Louise Struckmann, founder of Struckmann Studio
A serif title, a grey counterweight, no hierarchy
The central design problem was typographic: how to present Mahler's Symphony No. 5 and a Beyoncé cover with equal visual weight. Struckmann Studio set the event title in a serif typeface that references Copenhagen Phil's own logo, then used sans-serif for everything else — programme listings, artist names, set times — regardless of genre. Classical works and pop covers receive identical typographic treatment across the trifold programme.
The colour palette is built on a monochromatic pink gradient that moves from deep cerise at the edges to light pink in the centre. Grey is used alongside the pink as a counterbalance — keeping the palette from tipping entirely into seasonal territory. A violinist appears as a central visual element, functioning as a direct reference to the symphony orchestra within the otherwise contemporary expression. "The palette landed in a place that doesn't point toward either pop or classical, but toward love as the common denominator. Both genres exist in the romantic universe, and so the colours could embrace both without favouring either," says Struckmann. Architectural drawings of Radiohuset — Vilhelm Lauritzen's 1945 functionalist building — are integrated into the materials, treated in matching tones and functioning as a navigational element for the evening's multi-room programme.
Share Your Work — or Your Take
Nordic Brief covers the projects shaping Nordic design, branding, and technology. Working on something you think we should know about? Disagree with how the industry talks about identity systems, design ops, or AI in brand work? We want to hear from practitioners and encourage Nordic agencies and designers to send in project submissions, op-eds, and sharp opinions.