For a studio from Ukraine, being included in a Chinese showcase meant that its work was being seen far beyond its home market. External sources trace Sponge's history back to 2009, and CSS Winner gives the exact starting date: 22.11.2009. The company quickly gained recognition primarily through websites, and by 2015 publications about its work were appearing in the professional press and on international platforms.
The site that caught attention in 2013
The bureau's new website appeared in 2013, and its design with masonic symbolism immediately became a topic of discussion. On 05.12.2013, Awwwards, one of the most renowned international web design competitions, awarded the project an Honorable Mention. The Awwwards jury evaluates sites on design, usability, and creativity, so such an accolade signified recognition from the professional community. Then followed press coverage: on 09.02.2014, Splashnology included Sponge as number 23 in a selection of 30 dark web designs for inspiration.
In 2014, the bureau also made its mark at advertising festivals. At the 15th Crimean International Advertising Festival (KIAF), Sponge submitted seven entries. The bureau did not receive awards then, but in the same year it produced works recognized by Ukrainian Design: the Estetico.me website and the logo for «Первый городской». On 17.10.2014, the Ukrainian digital publication AIN.UA published the piece «What Dynamic Design Can Do: The Example of Creative Bureau Sponge,» and on 10.12.2014, «Одесса-медиа» reported on the presentation of the «Козырь Диджитал» website, created for the holding of Honored Journalist of Ukraine Alexander Kozyr.
Spring and Summer 2015: The Site That Spread Across the Web
On 08.05.2015, a case study of the bureau's new website appeared on Behance, the largest platform for publishing designers' work. A Behance publication in itself attracts curators, and within a few weeks the site was included in a series of «site of the day» (SOTD) accolades. These are daily honors for the best sites, selected by curators of aggregators. Between 24.05 and 14.08.2015, the bureau's works received accolades on CSSDA, CSS Nectar, CSS Light, CSS Winner, BestCSS, CSSReel, and Awwwards, where SOTD was awarded on 08.08.2015. For the American version of the site, One Page Love, BestCSS, and CSSDA Special Kudos were separately noted, the latter on 14.08.2015.
Meanwhile, the bureau's media prominence grew. On 13.02 and 05.03.2015, Korrespondent published blogs about Looks.fm, a service co-founded by Sponge founder Bogdan Gnatyuk, with Kirill Solyar leading the project. On 23.07.2015, the bureau gave an interview to Dark Site of Marketing, and on 30.06.2015, the work Madonna appeared on Behance. On 21.09.2015, Sostav included it in the selection «Best Projects of Summer from Behance» in the motion design category.
Team and Recognition
Bogdan Gnatyuk remains the studio's main public face. He has spoken at professional events, and on 20.10.2016 the bureau held a seminar titled «How to Open Your Own Web Studio.» In the Tagline ranking for 2016, Sponge took 67th place, sharing it with Saatchi & Saatchi. In 2016, Kirill Solyar was listed in IGate's selections as executive director of Sponge D&D, and Sergey Semernyov worked as a designer, as confirmed by the studio's profile on DOU.
By this time, the bureau's profile on CSS Winner lists 21 works, of which 9 received SOTD, 6 received Star status, and 6 were nominations. On 14.02.2017, the studio's new work, the Hijina website, received a CSS Winner nomination.
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