BLANTON MUSEUM OF ART
Drawing people in.
CHALLENGE
The Blanton’s purpose is to inspire people to “discover something unexpected.” And their collection delivers — with everything from 17th century oil paintings to neon signs to an entire building that serves as a cathedral to color and light. Yet their public face didn’t reflect just how surprising and dynamic their collection truly is. After partnering with acclaimed international architecture firm Snøhetta to refresh and revitalize their museum grounds, they needed to do the same thing for their brand.
VALUE
The Blanton invested years and millions to make the outside of the museum feel more inviting, exciting and better represent their true spirit. As construction neared completion, we worked with their team to make sure their brand was reinforcing these same intentions. We evolved the logo, developed a new visual design system and wrote a purpose-defining tagline — giving The Blanton the tools they needed to properly reintroduce themselves to the world and invite more people to discover the museum.
SERVICES
Blitz
Strategy & Positioning
Visual Identity
Tagline
Advertising
Social
LOGO
The Blanton’s collection proves that art comes in many shapes, forms and sizes. Yet their logo only had one horizontal version. To help modernize their brand, we developed a new logo system. This included creating multiple versions for greater flexibility and functionality, adding a frame to make the logo stand out among the art and adjusting the letter spacing to help the brand feel a bit more sophisticated and confident.
We also turned OF and THE vertical to draw the eye to key words in the name and as a subtle nod to the way people turn their heads when looking at a really engaging piece of art.
COLORS
Color was another opportunity to align the brand with the look, feel and energy of the new grounds and also reinforce the spirit of the collection. We chose a vibrant yellow to be the primary brand color based on the color of the redesigned entrance—a dramatic glass viewing area called the vault. Additional colors were inspired by other features of the building as well as some of The Blanton’s most iconic works of art.
DESIGN SYSTEM
One minute The Blanton could be promoting a Medieval sculptures exhibit and the next a modern art film installation. So they needed a design system and typography that could fit a wide range of subjects, tones and spaces.
The typeface ‘Magnet’ with its unique angular cuts adds energy and drama to their communications while also providing a nice contrast to the type in the logo. And because it comes in many weights and styles, it can adapt to their ever-shifting messaging needs.
The dynamic design system gave The Blanton’s team the flexibility to create materials for everything from rotating exhibits to community events to content series.
TAGLINE
The Blanton has a purpose statement that articulates their perspective and vision for the museum. It’s unique, clear and ambitious. But it isn’t super catchy. They wanted a shorter and sharper way to express their why, something that could quickly connect with staff and visitors alike. “See what art can do” speaks to the range of their collection and their belief that art should open people up to different perspectives and experiences.
PEOPLE
THE ART OF COLLABORATION | We worked with a big, interdisciplinary team at The Blanton that included their Directors of Marketing, Operations, Curatorial Affairs, their lead graphic designer and even the Head of Security — all led by Museum Director Simone Wicha.
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