Working closely with the Bay Area Discovery Museum and the architects Olson Kundig, we expanded the existing Discovery Museum brand to create and carefully integrate all graphic elements into the new children’s exhibits.
The visual design complements the DIY aesthetic of the installations by using a custom stencil version of the museum’s brand font and an appropriately crafty materials palette.
The graphic design system emphasizes the museum’s prestigious research in early child development and imparts the knowledge to adults without handing them a manual. Some design elements, like the “Did You Know?” tips, are directed at parents and caregivers to help them directly engage with the children rather than drift off on their phones. All exhibit panels include English, Chinese, and Spanish—and they said it couldn’t be done!
We also designed new donor signage for the museum that extends the new graphic system in tactile, informational, and even participatory ways.
