Ravensbourne University London students taste success again at D&AD New Blood Awards

Publication date:

Students from the Advertising and Brand Design course at Ravensbourne University London have once again been recognised at the prestigious D&AD New Blood Awards, with some winning their second successive accolade. 

The D&AD New Blood Awards is a globally-recognised competition which seeks to acknowledge creative excellence in industry-standard design and advertising projects. Each year, between 5,000 and 6,000 entries will compete for a coveted New Blood ‘pencil’, the iconic pencil-shaped trophy collected by the winners. 

These Awards represent a solid platform for young creatives and fresh talent, with Ravensbourne students’ repeated success a testament to the excellence of the Advertising and Brand Design programme. 

Ravensbourne students won for their inspired and considered responses to three industry briefs:

  • Mae Farley for Monotype
  • Charisse Saculingan, Eugene Corpuz and Karin Huitfeldt for HSBC
  • Harriet Power and Charlie Jones for Monotype

Harriet and Charlie’s Monotype project was their second New Blood award in as many years, having won their first ‘pencil’ in 2024’s awards as second-years. 

Their project, Voices from Afghanistan, is a platform which hosts typefaces extracted from the underground letters to girls in the UK written by women and girls living in Afghanistan under the severe restrictions imposed by the Taliban.

Through Voices from Afghanistan, women and young girls can use these typefaces to create placards and social media posts, thus amplifying the voices of women in political discourse.

Mae Farley’s winning Monotype project centred on inherent inequalities faced by those who face the greatest risk of displacement as a result of the climate crisis. Like Voices from Afghanistan, Up to Our Necks also focuses on typography as an active voice in discourse. The newly-developed Displaced Font transforms LinoType Bengali into a typeface made up of squares, each representing a life. 

The font can then be used in placards, posters and social media posts, pushing for broader recognition of climate-displaced individuals as refugees.

The HSBC project, a collaborative effort from Charisse Saculingan, Eugene Corpuz and Karin Huitfeldt, was named Go the Distance and looks to position HSBC as a dependable ‘lifelong partner’ through every stage of life.

Summary page of the HSBC Go the Distance project.
Summary page for the Up to Our Necks project
Summary page for the Voices from Afghanistan project.

I am thrilled and proud that our Advertising and Brand Design students have once again been named pencil winners at this year's D&AD New Blood Awards. This outstanding achievement is a testament to both the excellence of our students as well as the dedicated staff, course alumni and industry expertise at the core of Ravensbourne’s teaching. Congratulations!”

—

Paula Williams , Course Leader, BA (Hons) Advertising and Brand Design, Ravensbourne University London

These wins not only speak to the university’s pool of fresh talent, but also to the reciprocal relationship between Ravensbourne and industry. By ensuring that creative, business and technology sectors learn with us as much as our students learn with them, Ravensbourne is well-placed to produce industry-ready graduates capable of shaping and innovating their chosen fields.

You can find out more about Ravensbourne's exemplary BA (Hons) Advertising and Brand Design course via the dedicated course page.

Additionally, if you'd like to hear more about some of Ravensbourne's winning entries, you can read an in-depth interview with Charisse and Eugene by creative industries publication adobo Magazine.

You might also like