Digitally commemorating climbing Mount Everest

First Ascent is a passion project by Amsterdam-based design director Max Niblock and creative developer Stefan Vitasovic. Commemorating a century of expeditions to Mount Everest, and asking the question: did George Mallory achieve the first ascent 29 years before Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay would succeed in 1953? Max and Stefan were fascinated by the human drive and determination to achieve the impossible - wanting to share the story with those who may have never heard it before.

The idea was to create an editorial design style that focuses on photography - reflecting the imposing nature of the mountain. To achieve this, they used full bleed imagery and imposing 50% divisions - abstractly mimicking the flow of ice blocks in the Khumbu Icefall - one of the most dangerous climbing spots in the world. The combination of a sharp Sans Serif and elegant, flowing Serif typeface mirror peaks and slopes.

The project successfully overcame performance challenges of image heavy content and lengthy pages. Achieving a subtlety of motion and film-strip effects that effectively showcase the photography, and bring the story to life.

A perfect balance between image and text, resulting in beautiful, historical and digital storytelling.

A great way to dive into and learn about these historical milestones. Animations, as well as all the little details keep you engaged.

Results

• FWA site of the day
• CSS Design Awards site of the day
• feature in Communication Arts web picks