Snøhetta to Design New Visual Identity for the Wikipedia Movement

In a cutting-edge exploration of collaboration in design, the Wikimedia Foundation, the nonprofit that operates Wikipedia, has partnered with Snøhetta to create a new visual identity for its global organization. United by a common belief in humanity, generosity and knowledge, Snøhetta and the Wikimedia Foundation will explore how strategic branding and digital design can generate engagement and promote knowledge sharing across cultures and geographies. The aim is to create a brand identity system that supports Wikimedia’s international commitment to “setting knowledge free”.

Since 2001, the Wikimedia Foundation’s open source platform Wikipedia has grown into the internet’s public encyclopedia. The content is accessed by more than 1.5 billion unique devices each month, making Wikipedia one of the world’s most popular sites. Articles are constantly added and updated by more than 250,000 volunteers around the world.

As a collaborative knowledge platform that anyone can edit, Wikipedia today has more than 50 million articles – all free to read, use, and modify – available in roughly 300 languages. As a non-profit organization, the Wikimedia Foundation is committed to developing and maintaining open source knowledge – wikis – that are available for free to everyone. 

In service to its continued commitment to knowledge equity, the Wikimedia Foundation has chosen Snøhetta as its strategic design partner to better communicate its mission through a renewed visual identity. The goal is to design a new visual identity system that represents Wikipedia and the Wikimedia mission as part of the essential infrastructure of free knowledge in the digital age.

“Snøhetta has a long-standing commitment to developing socially sustainable design solutions that promote a sense of collective ownership and engagement with civic life. We chose Snøhetta as our strategic design partner for their demonstrated ability to develop strong, visual brand identities that transcend geographical boarders and bring people together. Snøhetta’s commitment to working creatively, openly, and together was the perfect fit for the project, and we’re thrilled to be working with them”, states Heather Walls, Chief Creative Officer of the Wikimedia Foundation.

From the ancient treasures of the Great Library of Alexandria in Egypt, to modern digital encyclopedias, knowledge sharing has been at the heart of human progress for centuries. It emancipates minds, reconciles differences, and breathes life into imagination. With a conviction that great design is rooted in deep knowledge of its users and human interaction, Snøhetta has had the opportunity to develop the design of Norway’s new banknotes and the wayfinding and visual identity for Norway's National Parks. Its broad portfolio of working with knowledge institutions includes the revival of the Library of Alexandria in Egypt.

“Looking at today’s media, political and democratic landscape, Wikimedia’s commitment to ‘set knowledge free’ is of great importance. The commitment to democratize knowledge is a core value to us and we believe in promoting these values across our projects and through our collaborations with great institutions and people. Our collaboration with the Wikimedia Foundation allows us to explore and expand our understanding of co-creation in the digital sphere, and we are very excited for the opportunity to work closely with Wikimedia and its community to achieve this”, states strategic advisor Sanda Zahirovic of Snøhetta.

The process will be documented and shared through a community-wide brand network that will guide the design process.

To follow the process, please go to http://brandingwikipedia.org

About the Wikimedia Foundation
The Wikimedia Foundation is a charitable, nonprofit organization that relies on donations. The Foundation operates Wikipedia and the other Wikimedia free knowledge projects, such as Wiktionary, Wikiquote, Wikibooks, Wikisource, Wikimedia Commons, Wikispecies, Wikinews, Wikiversity, Wikidata, and Wikivoyage.

The Wikimedia Foundation hosts Wikipedia and the Wikimedia projects, builds software experiences for reading, contributes, and shares Wikimedia content, supports the volunteer communities and partners who make Wikimedia possible, and advocates for policies that enable Wikimedia and free knowledge to thrive.

© Snøhetta
© Snøhetta© Snøhetta
Download images and videosnohetta.openasset.com

Credit information

PDF 291 KB
Download

Ingrid Sårheim

PR & Communications, Snøhetta

Share

Get updates in your mailbox

By clicking "Subscribe" I confirm I have read and agree to the Privacy Policy.

About Snøhetta

For almost 40 years, Snøhetta has designed some of the world’s most notable public and cultural projects. Snøhetta kick-started its career in 1989 with the competition-winning entry for the new library of Alexandria, Egypt. This was later followed by the commission for the Norwegian National Opera and Ballet in Oslo, and the National September 11 Memorial Museum Pavilion at the World Trade Center in New York City, among many others. 

Since its inception, the practice has maintained its original transdisciplinary approach, and often integrates a combination of architecture, landscape architecture, interior architecture, product design and art across its projects. The collaborative nature between Snøhetta's different disciplines is an essential driving force of the practice.

Today, Snøhetta has a global presence, with studios in seven locations spanning from Oslo to Paris, Innsbruck, New York, Hong Kong, Shenzhen, and Melbourne.

Snøhetta is currently working on a wide range of international projects, including the Shanghai Grand Opera House, the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library in Dakota, Harbourside redevelopment in Sydney and La Croisette in Cannes, to name a few. 

Recently completed works include Vertikal Nydalen in Oslo, Beijing City Library, the renovation of Musée national de la Marine in Paris, Orionis - the planetarium and observatory of Douai, Airside in Hong Kong, Esbjerg Maritime Center in Denmark, 550 Madison Garden and Revitalization in New York, as well as Volum lamps for Lodes.

Some of Snøhetta's previous projects include Ordrupgaard Art Museum expansion in Denmark, the Cornell University Executive Education Center and Hotel in New York City, Le Monde Group Headquarters in Paris, including the wayfinding and signage, Europe’s first underwater restaurant, Under, the redesign of the public space in Times Square, the expansion to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, Lascaux IV: The International Centre for Cave Art, Powerhouse Brattørkaia and design for Norway’s new banknotes.

Snøhetta’s working method simultaneously explores traditional handicraft and cutting-edge digital technology. At the heart of all Snøhetta’s work lies a commitment to social and environmental sustainability, shaping the built environment and design in the service of humanism. Every project is designed with strong, meaningful concepts in mind – concepts that can translate the ethos of its users and their context.

Among many recognitions, Snøhetta has been awarded the European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture – Mies van der Rohe Award for the Norwegian National Opera and Ballet, and the Aga Kahn Prize for Architecture for the Bibliotheca Alexandrina. In 2016, Snøhetta was named Wall Street Journal Magazine's Architecture Innovator of the Year, and the practice has been named one of the world’s most innovative companies by Fast Company two years in a row. In 2020, Snøhetta was awarded the National Design Award for Architecture, bestowed by Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum. In 2021 and 2022, Snøhetta’s Forite tiles won the Sustainable Design of the Year by Dezeen and Best Domestic Design by Wallpaper* in 2022, and the wayfinding system for Le Monde Group Headquarters was acknowledged with Monocle Design Awards. In 2023, Snøhetta won a number of awards for the Esbjerg Maritime Center and was named Architects of the Year at the Monocle Design Awards, in 2024 included a number of awards to Beijing Library and the BIA 2024 Award to Snøhetta and in 2025, Snøhetta was recognized with the OPAL Special Award for Sustainability, among others. 

Disclaimer: All materials provided by Snøhetta are intended exclusively for editorial use to communicate the specified project(s). The use of this material for commercial or third-party purposes is strictly prohibited. No material may be edited or altered from its original state in any manner. Credit must be given for all content used, acknowledging Snøhetta and/or the photographer or creator as the source. By using Snøhetta's press material, you agree to these terms and conditions.

 

Contact

Snøhetta Akershusstranda 21, Skur 39 N-0150 Oslo, Norway

press@snohetta.com

snohetta.com