VU BrandBookVU BrandBookThe VU logo is trademark protected; it is registered as a logo at the Benelux Office for Intellectual Property (BOIP). Copying or modifying the logo is not permitted. The rights to the VU logo and its individual components belong to VU Amsterdam and are exercised by the Executive Board of VU Amsterdam. Unauthorised use may have legal consequences.
VU service providers, suppliers and stakeholders may use the VU logo in their own communications only with the permission of the Communication & Marketing Department.
The VU logo consists of the full name in blue (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam), the word mark (VU) and the logo: a griffin, a fabled animal with the good qualities of a lion, an eagle and a horse. It is based on the idea that science is practised with its feet on the ground based on experience (down to earth) and with a generous flight of imagination (the wings).
You can download the VU logo and VU logos with added faculty names below.
• For screen, internet and office applications, use the PNG file formats.
• For optimal web display, use the SVG file formats.
• For printing, use EPS or PDF file formats.
Existing logos of research institutes that do not comply with the new logo rules will be phased out or replaced over the next three years in consultation with the research institutes. This will start in 2023 and will be facilitated by the Communications & Marketing (C&M) department.
VU BLUE
PANTONE Process Blue
CMYK 100/30/0/0
RGB 0/137/207
HEX 0089CF
RAL 5015
BLACK
BLACK 100%
CMYK 0/0/0/100
RGB 0/0/0
HEX 000000
Correct
application
Do not change the colours of the VU logo
Do not position parts
of the logo differently
The old VU logo is no longer used
The logo can only be placed on a white background
Do not place the logo freely on a photo
Correct
application
There is no English variant
You can place the diapositive logo on primary VU colours
The diapositive logo
is entirely white
The logo is invisible
on a background
that is too light
Do not use a freestanding white logo on a photo or illustration
Consistent use of a logo, including format is important for a professional appearance. Below are the dimensions of the VU logo for the different A formats.
Note: on printed matter, the VU logo must never be smaller than 26 mm in width. If the size is smaller, the name Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam will no longer be legible. The position of the VU logo may vary, but it should preferably be in the top left-hand corner.
A FORMAT
WIDTH LOGO
A7
26 mm
A6
37 mm
A5
52 mm
A4
74 mm
A3
105 mm
A2
118 mm
A1
160 mm
A0
198 mm
Exact sizing for online is difficult, as there are huge size differences between screens. Applications have therefore designed flexible grids to display layout elements, such as a logo in the header and text, properly on mobile phones, tablets, laptops and desktops. Instead of using exact units of measurement, percentages and other relative units are used. The term for this is responsive.
The correct format of the VU logo has already been determined in the responsive VU templates for vu.nl, Selligent (mailings) and Foleon (online magazine), for example. Examples of how the VU logo is displayed on different screens can be found here: brand book for online VU tools.
Tip: if you place your own logo in an e-mail, digital newsletter or on a website, place the logo in proportion, and max 1/3 of the width of the layout and not across the entire width.
It is possible to use a VU avatar for VU social media accounts. This is a shortened version of the VU logo, without the full name Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.
Next to the VU avatar, give the full name of the organisation Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam or VU Amsterdam (only in English). The VU avatar has a white and a blue variant. These depicted VU avatars are reserved for VU Amsterdam’s main social media accounts.
The avatars are available with a white and blue background. The PNG files are large enough to be used as an avatar (profile image) on a social media channels like Facebook and Twitter. And can be placed both in a square and in a round frame.
Existing avatars of research institutes that do not comply with the new logo rules will be phased out or replaced over the next three years in consultation with the research institutes. This will start in 2023 and will be facilitated by the Communications & Marketing (C&M) department.
There is a shortened version of the VU logo on the main tile of a podcast, white on a blue background. Below it is the word Podcasts in font DIN Pro Medium.
On the theme title – accompanying a series of podcasts – you will see a shortened version of the VU logo, white on one of the basic colours of the VU colour palette and also the colour of that series.
The tile of an episode from that series also features the title. All in DIN Pro Medium.
The VU Designstudio can design a tile for you.
Place the VU logo in combination with other logos on a white background. Freestanding white logos should be placed on a VU blue or on a plain neutral background.
Tips on getting the proportions right
Agreements have been reached with the University of Amsterdam (UvA), the Protestant Theological University (PThU), the University of Twente (UT) and Amsterdam UMC on the placement and proportion of partner logos.
Place the UvA and VU logos next to each other. Make sure they take up the same space, height and/or width. The texts accompanying the logos are the same height, with the exception of the U from the UvA logo. The UvA has a Dutch and an English version of its logo. If the language of communication is English, use the English UvA logo. VU Amsterdam has one logo variant, regardless of the language of communication.
Download the combination logo
Place the PThU and VU logo side by side. Make sure they take up the same space, height and/or width. The text part of both logos is the same height. PThU, like VU Amsterdam, has one logo variant, regardless of the language in which it communicates.
Download combination logo
Combination VU-UT logo
Place the UT and VU logos side by side. The logos are not aligned at the bottom or top but centred. The blue vertical stripe distinguishes the logos from each other. Like VU Amsterdam, the UT has one logo variant, regardless of the language in which it communicates.
Download the combination logo
Formatting examples in (downloadable) PDF
Place the Amsterdam UMC and VU logos next to each other. Make sure they take up the same space, height and/or width. The Amsterdam UMC logo, the tulip, is the same height as the VU text in the VU logo.
Amsterdam UMC has both Dutch and English versions of the logo. If the language of communication is English, use the English Amsterdam UMC logo. VU Amsterdam has one logo variant, regardless of the language of communication.
Download the combination logo
Formatting examples in (downloadable) PDF
