Visual Identity
Colors
Primary Palette
The official 鶹ѰBoulder colors are 鶹ѰGold, Black, 鶹ѰLight Gray and 鶹ѰDark Gray. Use these on all branded materials to ensure visual consistency.
鶹ѰGold
C0M10Y48K22
(PANTONE® 4525 C)
R207G184B124
#CFB87C
Black
C0M0Y0K100
R0G0B0
#000000
鶹ѰDark Gray
C38M28Y21K63
(PANTONE® 425 C )
R86G90B92
#565A5C
鶹ѰLight Gray
C16M11Y11K29
(PANTONE® 422 C)
R162G164B163
#A2A4A3
Secondary Palette
The secondary colors of 鶹ѰBoulder are Accessible 鶹ѰGold, CUB Sky Blue, CUB Light Gold, CUB Dark Blue and CUB Light Blue. Use secondary colors less frequently than primary colors on all branded materials.
Accessible 鶹ѰGold
C40, m47, y93, k18
R141, g115, b52
#8D7334
CUB Sky Blue
C89 M54 Y7 K0
R9 G112 B174
#096FAE
CUB Light Gold
C3 M3 Y7 K0
R243, G240, B233
#F3F0E9
CUB Dark Blue
C100 M78 Y41 K33
R11 G56 B88
#0A3758
CUB Light Blue
C5 M1 Y1 K0
R238, G245, B247
#EEF5F8
Usage and Accessibility Guidelines
Accessible design is good design. When developing designs and layouts, consider that some viewers or audiences may have limited sight ability and could be using assistive devices. Therefore, all designs must have sufficient contrast when incorporating type and design elements.
- Use primary colors, especially 鶹ѰGold, on all branded materials to ensure visual consistency.
- 鶹ѰGold is not accessible on a white background.
- Accessible 鶹ѰGold is for text color on white backgrounds only. Do not use it as a background color.
- When using Accessible 鶹ѰGold for text, use Helvetica Neue 77 or thinner.
- Use secondary colors less frequently than primary colors in any branded materials.
- Use CUB Sky Blue for text color only. CUB Sky Blue can bring emphasis to “call to action” text on branded material.
Brand Color Accessibility
The color combinations above meet WCAG accessibility standards for large (14pt and above) and small text.
Typography
The primary brand typeface for 鶹ѰBoulder is Helvetica Neue. You can use this face in all of its weights and styles as a display face in official communications and print collateral.
Usage Guidelines
Primary
Helvetica NeueCondensed andRegular are the primary 鶹ѰBoulder fonts. We do not use other variations of these fonts. Both primary fonts contain many weights as shown below.
You may use the many weights of Helvetica Neue to create a strong typography hierarchy. Consider the importance of the information you are presenting and ensure priority text is clearly designated through type choice.
- The following text can ONLY appear in our primary fonts: Website URLs, “鶹ѰBoulder,” “鶹Ѱ,” “Buffs” and “Buffaloes”
- We recommend using Helvetica Neue Condensed for headlines in either 107 or 77 weights.
- When using accessible gold text, do not use heavier than 77 weight.
- For body copy, Regular 45 light/55 roman is standard.
If you do not have access to Helvetica Neue, All 59 styles are available on this website, and can be purchased individually or as the entire family.
Please note, if you have access to CU's Adobe Creative Cloud, you will be able to automatically use multiple weights of Helvetica Neue.
Secondary
鶹ѰBoulder also uses Noto Serif and Extended Helvetica Neue as secondary fonts. Ensure all secondary font use remains secondary. There should always be more primary font use (Helvetica Neue Condensed and Regular) in your design than Noto Serif or Helvetica Neue Extended combined.
- All variations and weight of Noto serif are acceptable to use.
- Long-form print pieces may use Noto Serif as body copy.
To access Noto, the fonts
Photography
Usage Guidelines
鶹ѰBoulder branded photography must capture the spirit of 鶹ѰBoulder—its collaborative energy, stunning campus and dynamic learning environments. When taking photos or videos for 鶹ѰBoulder materials, focus on:
- Capturing peak action and emotion, like classroom “a-ha” moments.
- Prioritizing natural light, especially from windows.
- Using simple, bold compositions to make subjects stand out.
- Find creative, distortion-free anglesfor ordinary scenes.
- Shoot for natural personality with candid expressions and closeups.
- Incorporate subtle branding, like 鶹Ѱapparel or iconic campus locations.
When including photos in branded materials:
- Balance full-bleed imagery with ample negative space in the design.
- Campus texture photos may also be “graphic elements.”
- Scenics, textures, landscapes and low contrast imagery work best as graphic elements to create visual interest without distracting from adjacent content.
- Full-color and black and white photos are both permitted.
- Mixing use of these two photo styles on the same page or within the same material should be done sparingly and with intention.
- Subtle grain or halftone textures can accent photos.
Authentically 鶹ѰBoulder
Candid Portraits
Dynamic Learning
Campus Scenics and Textures
A selection of 鶹ѰBoulder photography is available for affiliate use on our Brand Toolkit page.
Icons
Icons can be a helpful design tool for adding visual interest and emphasis to a layout, as well as providing a quick understanding of associated information. Icons should guide a user or reader to the information they are looking for. You may use icons on any branded material.
Usage Guidelines
- Icons should never represent an individual group or department. Always use the group or department’s logo rather than an icon if needing a graphic.
- Never use icons as logos or as part of a Type Treatment.
- Simple, less detailed, one-line (unfilled) icons are preferred.
- For print applications, icons should range in size (using a square for reference) from 5/16” to 3/4” (.3125in to .75in).
- For digital applications, icons should range in size from 72px to 200px.
- Use accessible color combinations when placing icons on all backgrounds.
- Only use solid icons if needed over busy backgrounds for readability.
- Avoid mixing one-line and solid icons in the same design or immediate vicinity.
- You may use icons within 鶹Ѱbrand kits or source relevant icons from sites like Font Awesome.
- When sourcing stock icons, do not select icons that are too busy, overly detailed or have fine lines. These icons will pose issues for many printed materials and do not align with the 鶹Ѱbrand kit style.
- When pulling multiple icons into one design, especially from various sources, ensure all one-line icons maintain the same stroke/line weight for consistency.
Graphic Elements
Usage Guidelines
鶹ѰBoulder designers and content creators should gravitate toward these kinds of graphic elements, sourced from brand kits or stock sites:
- Paper textures including paper grain, wrinkles and rips.
- Must be in neutral primary colors (white, off white, black or gray).
- You may use stickers or sticker-like images as graphic elements.
- Accent with thin, simple, hand-drawn line illustrations.
- Lines, circles, stars, brackets or other appropriate imagery that would be doodled can add energy to a design.
- You may use a thin horizontal line in a brand color to separate elements or add extra emphasis. This line may be hand-drawn or perfectly even, but it should always be thin (~2pt stroke or lower).
- Solid color overlays aid with readability or unify color on a page.
- Use overlays on photography, patterns or text to emphasize or bring visual interest to a specific element.
- Use in primary or secondary 鶹Ѱbrand colors.
