Le Lieu Unique, 2022–2023 season

For the 2022–2023 season of Le Lieu Unique, Brussels-based studio Ekta reimagined the visual identity by playfully disrupting the historical logo of the national center for contemporary arts and music venue in Nantes. The three iconic bars are exploded across layouts to create dynamic spaces for text and imagery, all set in the Staff type family. A photographic series by Charlotte Marchal explores “perfect imperfections,” echoing Erik Kessels’ quote: “Mistakes set us free. They allow us to see things differently

Translated from Ekta’s website:

We started from the existing historical logotype to shake it up and revisit it.
Superimposed onto the visual elements of the events, the three “bars” of the logo are used like captions. By exploding their format and layout on the page, we free up spaces dedicated to typography and practical information.

Using the basic elements of the logo and embracing its off-balance composition allows us to create a multitude of graphic signs related to the original logo. A large number of materials are “stamped” with these simple yet always different graphic elements.

Continuing the dynamic applied to the logo, we aimed to shift the viewer’s perspective, to avoid freezing anything in place.
In collaboration with Charlotte Marchal, we proposed a series of photos reflecting the theme of “perfect imperfections” (Erik Kessels). Happy accidents and poetic displacements joyfully disrupt the reading of these images.