The Polytechnic Institute of Cávado and Ave (IPCA) commissioned a collaborative team of educators, professionals, and emerging creatives to design the identity for Enter The Void Festival 2024—a national cultural platform hosted at Teatro Jordão in Guimarães. The brief called for a bold, contemporary identity that would celebrate fearless creativity, encourage risk-taking, and resonate with a new generation of multidisciplinary thinkers across art, design, architecture, cinema, and sound.

Rooted in a student-led concept, the final identity was built around a central metaphor: the leap of faith, a symbol of the vulnerability and courage inherent in every creative act. The visual system explored the tension between control and chaos: fractured editorial grids, kinetic typography, and high-contrast human silhouettes portrayed the emotional freefall into uncertainty and hope. Risograph printing introduced raw, analog texture into the print communication, which was later translated into motion graphics through layered overlays, camera shake simulations, and rhythm-driven type behaviors. This analog-to-digital aesthetic reinforced the identity’s physicality while amplifying its visceral tone. Every frame invited viewers to abandon comfort and embrace transformation.

Enter The Void Festival is emerging as a national cultural landmark. The new identity catalyzed engagement across Portugal, helping the festival reach a cumulative total of 26 national speakers and over 200 attendees across its recent editions. It sparked a fast-growing creative movement that continues to challenge the boundaries of Portugal’s academic and professional ecosystems in the North. Participants described the experience as “an adrenaline shot of creativity” and “one of the most daring and necessary cultural movements of the year.” Today, the festival stands as a benchmark for inclusive education and creative courage—proving that the future of design isn’t automated; it’s audaciously human.