Institute of Contemporary Art, San Diego
How does an arts organization balance edginess and awareness? The Institute of Contemporary Art, San Diego, needed a flexible, multi-functional identity that would create instant recognition and invite people into the conversation.
A bold, out-of-proportion C references “Contemporary” within the full name, creating a memorable mark at even the smallest sizes. For more expressive applications, stylized alternate Cs enable the brand to emphasize an ever-changing dynamic.
The bold C becomes a shorthand for “see”, reminding everyone there’s always ‘something new to C’. The identity toolkit enables a range of different uses, helping the ICA create more impact in more places.
The main typeface for the new visual identity is Palo, used in Regular, Black and Compressed Regular styles. The C in the logo is set in TT Norms.
Principal and creative direction by John Ball; the senior designers for this project are David Alderman and Joann Yahn. For the full case story, visit the MiresBall website.
