Hillside Festival
Nestled between Winter Hill in Bolton and Manchester, Hillside Festival is a local gem that pulses with underground house and techno. As part of the Bolton Music Festival, it’s been growing steadily each year — but their existing logo? It was a placeholder at best, a rip-off at worst. When the organiser reached out, they were ready for something more timeless, ownable, and true to the spirit of the hillside.
Rooted in Landscape, Tuned to Sound
While reimagining the logo, I didn’t want to abandon the past entirely — just evolve it. The final mark I designed is a clean, minimal form that subtly nods to both sound waves and the rolling hills that backdrop the festival grounds.
The signature green — a colour deeply associated with Hillside since its early days — was retained, anchoring the brand in visual familiarity. I paired the mark with a bold, finely-aligned typographic wordmark that gives the entire lock-up structure, confidence, and a sense of music label-grade polish.
Building the 2025 Visual Language
Beyond the logo, I also designed the main visual direction for the 2025 festival. Drawing from inspiration boards filled with cues from the likes of Keinemusik, Circoloco, Tale of Us, Adriatique, and more — the goal was to express Hillside’s tone: raw yet spiritual, minimal yet emotional.
The visuals explored themes of sunset warmth, hilltop energy, waveforms, and that indescribable feeling when music and setting collide. The final poster direction combined lineup, location, date, and the new identity into a cohesive, collectible piece of artwork for the festival's return.
A Visual Foundation for the Future
This wasn’t just about cleaning up an old logo. It was about giving Hillside Festival a foundation to grow on — one that feels just as connected to its landscape as it does to its sound.
What I loved most about this project was the opportunity to create something local, but lasting. The kind of design that may start as a poster on a tree in Bolton, but ends up etched into memories, playlists, and phones across the UK.