Branding for a Presidency in Transition.
The Biden-Harris transition brand signaled a shift in the presidency from the time of the election win to the Presidential Inauguration.
The logo was built around the official Presidential seal, maintaining elements to form a clear, modern, and digital-first mark. The color palette made use of colors from the official seal, monuments, and red-white-blue. The typography was derivative of the campaign typefaces, with more hierarchy given to the campaign’s serif typeface, Mercury.
Role: discovery, concept, design
Website design: Ben Ostrower, Alex Rosales
Branding a historic march, turned virtual.
Commemorating the 57th anniversary of the historic March on Washington, where Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech,” the 2020 Virtual March on Washington needed to capture a new generation of young, black Activists, respect and honor the legacy of the historic march and civil rights leaders, reflect on the current racial inequity the Black community was experiencing, and engage folks virtually with an identity and website that would drive actions around voting.
The concept was based on a core idea: Renew the dream. A way of reconstructing the past, while building a new way forward. Archival photos of the past and present-day marches, and bold colors referencing the energy of young activists, alongside regal metallic colors and purples that serve as a reference to Dr. King formed collages. They formed the key illustration style for the virtual march and aimed to capture the energy of a physical march.
The core typeface, Bayard, by Vocal Type was directly inspired by the posters of the 1963 March on Washington and Bayard Rustin an organizer of the 1963 March on Washington.
A range of brand assets were created including merch, social graphics, social posters, zoom backgrounds for the Divine Nine (nine historically Black fraternities and sororities).
Millions showed up to the March in person and online. There were over 464,000 page views during the two-day march and 59,000 sign-ups.
Role: discovery, concept/creative direction, design
Logo & website design: Ben Ostrower
Branding an organization preserving the roots of Southern music.
Music Maker Foundation tends the roots of traditional American music by meeting the day-to-day needs of the artists who create it, ensuring their voices are heard, and giving all people access to our nation’s hidden musical treasures.
Music Maker Foundation needed a brand redesign and a new website to ensure their mission and work were clarified and up-to-date for their supporters across printed and digital platforms.
Musicians are the heart of the Music Maker Foundation. Their voices and their instruments, like the guitar, are central to the work. This notion inspired the new Music Maker Foundation logo. The brand was grounded in keywords such as rooted, clever, spunky, heartfelt, and essential. It was intentionally forward-looking but rooted in the past. It aimed to capture and celebrate an active and vibrant community of musicians. This was achieved by the use of large untouched photography of the artists, all photographed by the Music Maker Foundation Founder, Tim Duffy. The primary typeface, Lydia, was inspired by hand hand-painted typography, a common part of the Southern musical culture seen on signage and flyers, and references warmth and humanity.
Role: discovery, concept/creative direction, design
Website design: Alex Rosales
Branding an organization transforming the American criminal justice system.
The REFORM Alliance aims to reframe probation and parole. The brand needed to distinguish them as bold and human, with a distinct aesthetic (much different than what you'd expect from an advocacy organization) due to the star power of their founders. The refinement of their core palette, an extension of a secondary palette, new typography, and a focus on humanizing the work through a curated photo style, set them up for bringing new activists into their important and urgent work.
Role: brand refresh concept and design
Website design: Vania Myers
Social media graphics: REFORM Alliance
Event identity design for a 100-year organization preserving individual rights and liberties in the U.S.
With consideration to the ACLU’s core brand, the goal was to create an identity for the gala and after-party for the ACLU, marking 100 years of the organization’s achievements. Building from the brand typeface and palette, the gala design focused the wide ACLU brand palette to three core colors: red, black, and the introduction of gold for formality. Photography was consistently black and white, closely cropped, and focused on a singular person within ACLU’s work. This focus was meant to link us to each story and case, reminding us of the power of each person toward a more just America and their impact on 100 years of the ACLU.
Role: discovery, concept/creative direction, design
Website design: Vania Myers
Various logos for brands, campaigns, and products.
Erkiletian
The Right to Research Coalition
Access Democracy
The St. George at National Harbor
Sauce restaurant
Hillary Land
Typostrophe
First in Line
NYC Votes
Book Drive
L’Enfant Plaza
Role: concept, design
Various posters for social awareness, civic engagement, advertisements, and products.
Coronavirus Posters
Role: copy, concept, design
Know Your Tenant Rights fold out Poster
Center for Urban Pedagogy
Role: design, collaboratively designed with Chelsea Goldwell & Hanah Ho
Dormify Alphabet Posters
Role: concept, design
Haiti Poster Project
Role: copy, concept, design
Branded collateral for the largest gun violence prevention organization in America.
Mass Shootings in the U.S. report
Disarm Hate Subbrand
Role: concept/creative direction, design
Branding for a family-owned ice cream shop bringing the “sweet life” to Harlem.
Role: concept/creative direction, design
Branded messaging and collateral for Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign.
Logos
• Hil16ry The combination of our candidate’s name and the election year inspired the Hil16ry logotype.
• Team Hillary Using a flag symbolic within collegiate sports, the Team Hillary logotype and pennant clearly exuded team pride, and cheer. The feeling was clear, Hillary was our champion!
• H’s The iconic Hillary for America mark represented the strength of our candidate and her dedication to ensuring a better future for America. Its presence throughout the campaign attested to its symbolic power and versatility as seen with H’s for Book lovers day, National Basketball Association playoffs, Christmas day, Valentine’s day, Mother’s day, and an application with Hillary Clinton herself.
I’m with her What could the Hillary for America campaign say that no one else could? “I’m with her”—and everyone knew exactly which “her” we were talking about. The seemingly simple message quickly turned into a widely-used supporter hashtag, shared over 5 million times on Twitter and stated by President Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama, Eva Longoria, Katy Perry, Cher, Kerry Washington, and Beyoncé!
for45 branding for45 was a national network of young professionals, leaders, and grassroots advocates under the age of 40 who were committed to electing Hillary Clinton as the 45th President of the United States. It also sought to move the conversation forward on issues important to young professionals and the next generation of leaders. Due to the young audience, the design played with mixing a wide range of the brand palette, an abstracted campaign logo, and monochromatic photography
She’s with us concert design collateral This fundraising concert was at the historic Greek Theatre in Los Angeles in June 2016. It featured performances by renowned singers and musicians, including Christina Aguilera and Stevie Wonder, as well as an appearance by Hillary Clinton herself. The identity spanned both print and digital realms in the form of email invitations, credentials, social graphics, and display slides.
I’m with her concert design collateral The concert was titled after showing support for our candidate, the colors and shapes were reflective of the venue, Radio City Music Hall’s art deco architecture. Our candidates’ image was featured prominently on the event collateral, because, we’re with her!
Blog infographic How an illegal gun gets in the hands of criminals.
Organizing poster and button Poster and button set designed to celebrate organizers on the ground in the states. Each piece stated the organizer's motto “Engage with purpose. Organize with heart. Win every day.” with a silhouetted photograph of Hillary Clinton.
Role: concept/creative direction, copy (I’m With Her), design
Well-known folks in branded collateral. Paul McCartney, Beyoncé, Michelle Obama, Lena Waithe, Elaine Welteroth.
Role: concept, collateral design
Branded collateral for a boutique hotel and restaurant collection.
Affinia Chicago invitation This invitation design was for an event revealing the new look of the hotel and included a special performance by the Joffrey Ballet. A celebratory feel came through in the typography with the message “Bravo!” and silhouetted ballet dancers.
Art & Soul restaurant invitation Designed for a restaurant opening, the invitation was uniquely paired with a custom red napkin, relating back to an object synonymous with dining.
Role: concept/creative direction, design
Branded collateral for a Presidential nonprofit and library.
President Clinton book of remarks President Clinton select remarks 2000–2011, 2012, and 2013. Designed as a keepsake, the books feature a special design and printing details.
Clinton Presidential Center, Dorothy Howell Rodham & Virginia Clinton Kelley exhibition This exhibition at the Clinton Presidential Center, in Little Rock Arkansas, highlighted the extraordinary lives of the mothers of Hillary Rodham Clinton and President Bill Clinton. They were born in the years after World War I and came of age during the Great Depression and World War II. The exhibition design and print collateral were inspired by a pattern from that time, in the 1920s, and played into an Americana color palette.
Clinton Foundation & Nelson Mandela Centre of Memory, Embrace Tomorrow conversation signage Held in South Africa, this conversation streamed online, with the goal to engage the audience in-person and online. The staging and signage design was reflective of both organizations.
Role: creative direction, design
