Philadelphia Contemporary
Founded in 2016, Philadelphia Contemporary is a contemporary arts organization whose mission is to connect the people and places of Philadelphia through art and partnership. Currently nomadic, Philadelphia Contemporary presents visual art, performance art and spoken word across the city, with ambitions to establish a freestanding, globally oriented, and locally aware non-collecting arts institution.
Team partnered with Philadelphia Contemporary at a moment of organizational growth to establish a clarified brand strategy and a new visual identity.
Through a series of stakeholder interviews and workshops with Philadelphia Contemporary team members and community leaders, Team identified core themes that guided Philadelphia Contemporary’s strategic direction and new identity. Alongside a new mission, vision, and tagline, Team and Philadelphia Contemporary charted a new course for the organization, emphasizing the embodiment of organizational values through action, rather than words, and a focus on its target audience.
Grounded by the symmetrical lengths of the words Philadelphia and Contemporary, the new identity features a modular grid system that embraces the bold, architectural geometries of the city. But just as Philadelphia Contemporary — and the art and artists it champions — strives to shift boundaries, the identity uses key moments to break the grid, creating a dynamic and unexpected expression of the organization’s purpose.
A vibrant responsive palette inspired by the city’s rich history pairs with striking typography that offers a powerful alternative to the expected white box identity of your typical contemporary art institution.
