500 Capp Street Foundation

Internationally recognized artist David Ireland was a long-term resident of the Mission district in San Francisco. His work gained acclaim for its perspective on life as art – creating innovative site-specific works that innately perk our curiosity. David’s home at 500 Capp Street is the zenith of his work, and the 500 Capp Street Foundation is not only preserving the home as San Francisco’s first historic artist’s house, but will also present curatorial programs, special events, open houses and tours, and an artist-in-residency program. The Fuseproject brand team worked with the foundation to develop a brand identity that would distinctly mark 500 Capp Street as the new and unique, arts and culture institution in our community.

brand

David Ireland’s art is dynamic; he transformed every element of his home into an artistic wonderment. We were able to give 500 Capp Street Foundation an identity that reflects his bold yet unpretentious style through a custom letterform, with the 0’s of ‘500’ reflecting one of his more famous projects, his smart “dumballs.” We paired this with Domaine font, which adds an element of charm while still maintaining a substantial presence.

As we looked at how this logo would translate into other brand touch points we continued looking at “500” as the fulcrum – “500 reasons to see David Ireland,” “500 reasons to be grateful,” “500 reasons to celebrate.” The naming convention becomes a tool to interact with the brand, creating a dialogue and an intimacy that is integral as a cultural center. Everything from business cards to letterhead, invitations to brochures, have been designed to play into each other, merging life and art the way David would have. The color palette was pulled directly from the house itself, using the amber of the high-gloss polyurethane varnish as the hero color. Even the new museum maps are inspired from the same theme, beginning as a seemingly uninteresting take-away card and magically unfolding into a full-size map.

Recognition

Awards

  • Transform Awards

    • Highly Commended - 500 Capp Street Foundation, Best strategic/creative development of a new brand, 2016

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