The winners of the European Design Awards 2026 were announced in Sofia, Bulgaria, during the European Design Festival, which brought together designers, creative directors and studios from across Europe. Studio Dumbar/DEPT® has been awarded four prizes: one gold, two silver and one bronze award.
Comedy Central
Gold – Motion Graphics
Bronze – Animated Storytelling
Studio Dumbar/DEPT® refreshed Comedy Central’s brand idents by turning the channel’s core identity elements into playful characters. Built around the brand mission “make life funnier,” the design brought the wordmark and CC symbol to life through motion, interaction, and distinctive sound design. Morphing shapes, visual gags, physics-based animation, and unexpected audio twists created humorous narratives rooted in timing and surprise. The result was a flexible system of 31 idents that amplified Comedy Central’s distinctive personality, wit, and entertainment value.
OpenAI DevDay 2025
Silver – Applied Typography
OpenAI’s DevDay identity, created by Studio Dumbar/DEPT® with the OpenAI Design Studio, was designed for developers from around the world. Celebrating software engineering as both a technical and creative discipline, the identity draws inspiration from coding conventions and OpenAI Sans to create a flexible system spanning typography, motion, signage, sound, and interactive experiences. Influenced by Codex, ASCII art, and arcade games, it featured playful zoomorphic characters across custom games, phone booths, and collectible plushies, creating a memorable event experience.
Transavia
Silver – Rebranding Projects
Studio Dumbar/DEPT® refreshed Transavia’s brand positioning and visual identity to appeal more strongly to business travellers while retaining its leisure-market appeal. Guided by the principle “smart choice, enjoyable journey,” the redesign evolved existing brand assets, introducing a bolder logo that functions as a dynamic cursor across digital touchpoints. Updated typography, photography, icons, colour palettes, and motion design created a cohesive identity that strengthens Transavia’s value-cost positioning while preserving its recognisable, customer-friendly character and supporting future growth.
Studio Dumbar/DEPT® is an international agency with a Dutch heritage, specialising in identity, motion, sonic and software. They work for a variety of clients both large and small – from business and government to cultural and non-profit. Projects span from Instagram motion identity, the Dutch Railways visual identity, Comedy Central motion idents, Utah Jazz motion language, the refresh of the Van Gogh museum identity to initiating and designing DEMO, the largest design in motion festival in the world.
Photography awards ceremony: Mihail Novakov
