Palais De Tokyo

Re-Imagined

The Palais de Tokyo is the largest center for contemporary artistic creation in all of Europe and focuses on artists of the current time from all different cultural backgrounds. “True to its civic mission, Palais de Tokyo proved itself to be a reference in the area of cultural meditation early on thanks to an innovative, diversified, and generous approach to connecting with the public”. The museum was built for the International Exhibition of 1937 and the building called “Palais de Tokyo” takes its name from the “Quai de Tokio”. Initially, it was designed to host two distinct museums: The City of Paris Museum of Modern Art in one wing and the National Museum in the other. In 1939 some of the works were evacuated because of the threat of requisition by the German government. At the end of 1941, the basements of the museums were transformed into stores for the sequestration of looted Jewish property. In 1976 the National Museum of Modern Art was closed and the collections were moved to the Center d’Art et de Culture Georges Pompidou in the Marais district. The Palais de Tokyo now covers the entire west wing of the building, which makes it the largest contemporary art center in Europe.

UI project

UI designer
Website design

4 months : April 2021

As a designer, the first part of my re-imagining The Palais De Tokyo was concentrating on the visual identity. By reflecting on what the brand attributes were I could have a clear understanding of how to shape, identify, and monitor opportunities for the visual brand. Part of the fun was just concentrating on adjectives that reflect the museum’s identity.

Logo Designs

Brands are built from parts that together, produce a Gestalt. After thinking about the 4 attributes of the Museum. I then moved into re-imagining the logo and so I worked on designing a large selection of examples and then eventually found the strongest logo designs.

3 Final Logo Designs

After I settled on a few directions I continued my logo-making process by searching for typefaces that complement the overall look and feel of the website. I considered how certain letters make the audience react and how that might enhance or distract from the brand story. I then experimented with all uppercase letters, all lowercase letters, title case, and sentence case. In this part of the process, I emphasized different words through shifts in scale, kerning, and weight. I wanted to create a design that reflects the old and new. I wanted to reimagine a design that really would also represent the rich history of Paris.

Typographic Palette

When thinking about the typography and font family that I would utilize, I wanted to make sure to impact how people perceive and experience The Palais De Tokyo. I also kept in mind studying how certain fonts might be more accessible than others for those with vision impairments/dyslexia. I chose the Futura font based on the modern look and feel, and how legible this font-family is. I also like the look and feel of an Avant-garde design because it represents the type of museum I am designing for.

Final Logo + Color Palette

Color Palette

When choosing the color palette for the museum branding I thought about what tone I would set and how the audience would feel. Color has been said to be the most relational element of art and design. When selecting colors for your brand, I remembered that color never lives in isolation. Each color I selected creates a mood and tone for how the audience perceives the imagery that I had created.

Stationery Set

For the Stationery set I wanted to create a harmony with the visual and content hierarchy. Stationery systems are made up of three items: Business card, letterhead, and an envelope. I wanted to create a unique design that wraps around the front and back of each piece but also adhere to a soft color aesthetic and mood that I was creating for the entire brand identity.

Final Design

Palais De Tokyo Re-Imagined was designed because I wanted to create an experience to illuminate all the new possibilities through color, branding, and pixels. I wanted to design a unique involvement in which the typography, color and layout would calm and affect the audience visiting the museum. Because of the original exhibitions I wanted to showcase a softer overall effect for the audience.