New old work alert: Math and Music branding and exhibit design
I just wanted to drop a quick post since I don’t think I ever shared this work from years ago.
Math and Music is an exhibit at (the then new) Discovery Lab (Children’s Museum) in Tulsa Oklahoma. It features several awesome interactive stations where kids can interact with sound waves in different ways.
This exhibit was just one of many that were installed for the grand opening. Years later, I’m very appreciative to have worked with Discovery Lab enough times to be able to come up with a predictable and repeatable process for designing the visuals of their exhibits. From pitching the exhibit idea for funding, to local production and installation, and finally to packaging as an exhibit that travels to other museums.
I treat each exhibit as a brand system. They are essentially visual identities.
So for Math + Music, we made waves the theme of the identity system (duh). The logo has an MM icon that doubles as intersecting waves.
Several waves with different amplitudes and frequencies run throughout the exhibit. In several spots the waves have labels to show the different parts of a waveform. This is a subtle touch for “texture,” not meant to distract from the actual interactive stations. Think of them as easter eggs.
The identity system includes a pattern library inspired by Chladni Plates, one of the interactives. Sand pours onto plates that vibrate at specific frequencies. The vibrations shake the sand into formations. These formations are the inspiration for the patterns.
We LOVED these patterns, but begrudgingly agreed that they were too visually intense for the space. Again, it’s a balance of visual support and texture and not pulling attention away from the interactives. The patterns remain part of the system, but would be an asset better used for marketing and promotion.
With all the interactives, there are several areas of instruction to explain how to use them. So, some typography standardization was also needed for the visual system.
Anywho, just thought I’d share. Better late than never, right? LMK what you think yall.
✌️Rvw
