TOTEM, the Waterford and Cork based branding agency, has been once more recognised at the prestigious Transform Awards Europe 2025, winning a bronze award for Best Brand Architecture for its visionary work with Réalta - Ireland’s new national organisation for Arts and Health.
Held each year in London, the Transform Awards celebrate excellence in rebranding and brand development across Europe. TOTEM’s accolade acknowledges the depth, clarity, and creativity of its strategy in reshaping how Arts and Health is structured, seen, and understood across Ireland.
TOTEM’s challenge was as complex as it was meaningful: help a long-standing local organisation, the Waterford Healing Arts Trust, evolve into a national leader without losing its roots. The brief was to unite three very different areas of work - local arts programming, a national online resource (artsandhealth.ie), and a new nationwide initiative - under one coherent brand strategy.
The result was Réalta (Irish for ‘star’), a unifying name and identity that honours legacy while setting a bold direction for the future. Guided by a hybrid brand architecture, TOTEM enabled the three brands, Réalta, Waterford Healing Arts, and Arts+Health - to connect through a shared purpose: to illuminate health paths through the transformative power of the arts.
“This project speaks to the heart of what we do,” said Colin Byrne, Creative Director and Founder of TOTEM. “Brand architecture isn’t just about organising logos - it’s about organising meaning. Réalta needed to be more than a name. It had to hold space for local work, national ambition and editorial independence, all under one constellation. We’re proud to have delivered a solution that reflects both complexity and clarity.”
The project has been widely praised by both national and international figures in the Arts and Health movement, with strong endorsement from the Arts Council of Ireland and the World Health Organisation. Since its launch, Réalta has experienced a 300% increase in web engagement and has firmly established itself as the voice of Arts and Health across the country.
TOTEM continues to position itself as the go-to branding agency for ambitious organisations with a mission to make meaningful change. With a growing portfolio spanning life sciences, technology, education, and the non-profit sector, TOTEM combines strategy, storytelling and design to build brands that stand out – and be distinctly different.
