Cultural Arts Council Unveils Logo

With unanimous approval from the on Wednesday, the now has a representative logo that brands the arts movement in Agoura Hills.

The winning design was created by graphic artist Caron Perkal from Malibu, who was among three artists who submitted ideas, according to Amy Jones-Brink, community services director. The logo will appear on a forthcoming website, as well as on city brochures and other materials, she said.

"When the CAC was developed [a year ago], one of the initiatives was to develop branding and marketing," Jones-Brink said.

As part of the branding process, Ed Ball, chairman of the CAC and owner of RED, a branding consulting firm, said that members of the council, along with Mayor Harry Schwarz and Mayor Pro Tem Dan Kuperberg, held a brainstorming session to determine how best to represent the Agoura arts scene.

"We decided to use the postal ZIP Code: '91301, a Cultural Experience,' " Ball said. "Numbers are also very big right now."

Next, the CAC wanted community input and sent out a survey asking residents, "What does the arts in Agoura mean to you?," said Ball.

"What we found was that people wanted a connection with the Los Angeles art scene but also the casual feel of Agoura," he said.

What the council ended up with was a marriage of "simplicity and elegance" in design, illustrated by brush strokes to show "creativity, self-expression and balance," said Ball.

At Wednesday's meeting, council members expressed their approval of the logo.

"I couldn't be more pleased," said Councilman William Koehler. "When I first presented this idea to the City Council and to the public ... I never dreamed that we could get it up and running in less than one year. ... It's wonderful to see the committee has come this far, and I wish them the best of luck."

In an email to Patch, Schwarz said, "The logo represents the first step in creating an identity for our Agoura Hills Cultural Arts Council. The logo itself consists of raw brushstrokes, the essence of painting and of the artist. It will symbolize Agoura Hills' willingness to promote the arts in our community, which I think is an uplifting endeavor in our day-to-day lives."

Next, the CAC plans to roll out its own web site, utilzing the new logo. Jones-Brink hopes the site will be Agoura's go-to "search engine for the arts."