Beirut Re-Store

Beirut Re-Store is a humanitarian initiative, founded by creatives, aiming at helping restore Beirut after the tragic explosion of August 2020. It is an online marketplace that offers a selection of artworks donated by artists and designers of all kinds: proceeds will go to the Beirut Emergency Fund 2020, which will distribute the money to well-vetted NGOs.

Bureau Antoine Roux, in collaboration with Laura Tabet and assisted by Marwan Kaabour, used Proto Grotesk incl. Proto Grotesk Mono from Production Type for the charity’s identity. The principle of alternating black and white blocks catches the eye and evokes the idea of re-construction through the stacked arrangement of the text. The initiative is very much active on Instagram (@beirutrestore), where we can see a special focus on the artists who donated their works. The identity works well in this media: the association between the artists’ names and their donations is immediately visible, and the black and white blocks provide structure to the diverse range of artworks. The website is clear and dynamic at the same time. The pages are framesd by horizontal scrolling lines of text set in Proto Grotesk Mono, the text repeating itself, in a feeling of emergency: these thin contrasted lines also call to mind security strips enclosing dangerous sites. The monospaced Proto Grotesk is there used for its great legibility and its technical aspect, adding a visual metaphor and at the same time transferring information in the most comprehensible way possible.