(MENAFN- Trend News Agency)
Bulgarian News Agency (BTA) Director General Kiril Valchev and
Rector of the National Academy of Art (NAA) in Sofia Prof. Georgi
Yankov signed an agreement to have a new typeface created that for
the time being is known as BTA. At the signing, which took place at
BTA's press club in Burgas on Saturday, Valchev and Yankov said
that the goal is to BTA an institution with a unified new look
based on Bulgarian traditions, Trend reports.
According to the agreement, the font will be developed on the
basis of the Cyrillic alphabetic system and will include elements
from the time of its creation in the 9th century AD by the
disciples of Cyril and Methodius, who the Bulgarian Orthodox Church
commemorates every year on July 27.
At the signing, Valchev said: "We already have experience with
different fonts. On the BTA website, for example, we use the Sofia
Sans font, which was developed with the participation of
specialists from the NAA for Sofia Municipality. In LIK magazine we
use various fonts such as Pliska, Monserrat, Bitter, and in our
correspondence, we use Times New Roman. In fact, at this point, BTA
is doing what all institutions do in this country - using fonts
haphazardly. We have virtually no unified visual identity. Often we
also use fonts based on other countries' designs."
Valchev said that while this may seem like a minor issue amid
the vast pool of other problems that the country faces, it is still
a part of the Bulgarian people's self-respect. He added: "To use
others' fonts, even though we gave the Cyrillic alphabet to the
world, is obviously ridiculous to say the least, so I hope that our
example will be used by other institutions."
The term of the contract is five months, which means the project
should be completed by the end of the year. The new typeface will
then be patented and can be used by other institutions.
Yankov said the NAA has the capacity to make the state "play in
harmony in terms of graphic design". He also shared his joy at the
fact that institutions such as BTA and the NAA are helping to
represent Bulgaria's typography tradition.
The NAA Rector said: "Bulgaria is still the first country
admitted to the European Union whose official alphabet is not
Latin, but Cyrillic. This is an exceptional opportunity to showcase
our graphic standards and label [...]"
Yankov reported that the main person involved in the development
of the BTA font was Assoc. Prof. Svetlin Balezdrov, who is also
currently working on the design for Latvia's euro coin.
Prof. Kristina Borisova compared BTA to world leaders of mass
media such as the BBC and CNN, who also commissioned the creation
of their own corporate fonts. She praised BTA for choosing to work
with the NAA, the country's most prestigious institution in the
visual arts, instead of a typography studio.
Borisova shared that in terms of style, the new font will be a
bearer of local traditions, but it will also have the simplicity
and clarity of Frutiger, the rigour of Helvetica and the harmony of
Optima.
Before the official signing, the July issue of LIK magazine was
presented, which is dedicated to the 55th anniversary of the Black
Sea resort of Albena.
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