Pentagram

Building on their brand identity for the Williamstown Theatre Festival, Andrea A. Trabucco-Campos and team have designed the visual direction for the recent and critically acclaimed 71st edition in Williamstown, MA. This year’s Festival marked a bold expansion of the programming with a rethinking of the schedule resulting in three immersive weekends rich in experiences and incredible casting (with stars like Pamela Anderson and Amber Heard). Under the new visionary leadership of Creative Director Jeremy O. Harris and Managing Director Raphael Picciarelli, the Festival pivoted to maintain its loyal fans while also making theater relevant and inviting to younger audiences traveling from urban centers like NYC or Boston. To match the energy of this year’s programming, the visual direction is centered on movement. Interpreted through a motion behavior of blur that affects photography and typography, moments in time are frozen as they happen. The designers worked closely with the Williamstown creative leadership to develop a series of key images that conveyed the essence of each performance. The team then animated them using Runway and AfterEffects to make them dynamic and seamless with the rest of the visual system. This renewed attitude marks a complete transformation of the Festival visible in every part of its ecosystem: the town’s takeover through signage and wayfinding, key visuals for every performance, program design, badges, digital billboards, social media framework and unique merch. This year’s identity also cements the fundamental parts of the Williamstown design system established with the 70th edition: a new iconic logo with the monogram W, the graphic system of dynamic stages, and a unique typographic combination of bold type in Review Condensed with the evergreen Times New Roman. Check out the full case study: https://lnkd.in/ecti7SRa

Harry Pearce and team have designed a new visual identity and catalogue for the Royal Drawing School in East London, as the school celebrates its 25th anniversary with an exhibition about the power of drawing: https://lnkd.in/eF9byHgY

Giorgia Lupi and team have designed the brand identity framework for “Inequalities,” the 24th Triennale Milano International Exhibition, currently on view in Milan. Arriving at a time of extreme societal instability, “Inequalities” explores the global challenges arising from the powerful yet often unseen differences across various dimensions of human existence and the growing disparities that characterize them. The identity by Giorgia and team uses the shifting patterns of data visualizations to embody these themes of imbalance. The dynamic generative system can express different statistics while providing a cohesive visual framework for the wide-ranging content. The program encompasses the exhibition graphics and promotional campaign, as well as the book design for the accompanying catalogue, published by Electa editore. The designers wanted visitors to ask themselves questions about inequalities even before entering the exhibition, and saw data as the key to unlocking a more narrative, human-centered approach, carefully depicting big and small inequalities with a graphic clarity that they felt the topic demanded. To start, the team researched datasets that could describe inequality along multiple vectors, including life expectancy, economic prosperity, education attainment, ecological change, war and violence, and democratic participation. These datasets became the narrative input for the design system, eventually feeding directly into a custom-built visualizer that translated the numbers into distinctive gridded patterns. The design embraces the philosophy of #datahumanism, a way of working with quantitative and qualitative information that counteracts the stereotype of data as “cold,” technological and machine-made. The distinctive look of the identity helped create a highly recognizable presence for the Triennale across the landscape of international cultural events, print and digital media, and Milan itself. Check out the full case study: https://lnkd.in/eY8f-9WV

After 41 happy years at Needham Road, Pentagram is moving to a new studio space in the heart of Islington. The Old Sorting House is a characterful building on Packington Street, London N1. Originally constructed in 1855 for the Northern District Post Office, it was later transformed into the Coronet cinema in 1911 and eventually became the antiques emporium known as The Merchants Hall. The new studio space is fully accessible. It has an airy, industrial feel and a bespoke interior designed by former Pentagram partner William Russell. The ground and first floors are home to open-plan studios and meeting rooms, while the top floor houses a professional kitchen and a flexible area with a roof terrace running alongside. Eating together and welcoming the design community into our studio has always been part of Pentagram’s DNA, and the top floor will serve as our new canteen and event space. The ground floor will also house Pentagram’s new Osh Gallery, a compact space that will house around five shows per year, opening with Roadworks, an exhibition of work by design legend (and local N1 resident) Margaret Calvert, and running as part of this year’s London Design Festival. Pentagram partner Angus Hyland explains: “While we’re sad to leave Needham Road, we’re excited to begin a new chapter relocating across town to a vibrant neighbourhood. It’s a thoughtfully designed space that we’re confident will be equally inspiring to work in, and with the addition of a gallery alongside the top floor events space, we’re now better equipped than ever to welcome and engage with the wider design community at Pentagram.” Pentagram LDN New address from 11 August 2025: The Old Sorting House 162 Packington Street London  N1 8RA

It's Nice That has published ‘The Art of Dailiness,’ an essay by Michael Bierut reflecting on his iconic 100 Days Project and the role of routine and discipline in the creative process. The piece is accompanied by never-before-published images of Michael’s sketchbook from his original iteration of the project back in 2002. The essay is reproduced from ‘The Book of Alchemy: A Creative Practice for an Inspired Life,’ the bestselling new book by author and journalist Suleika Jaouad. Jaouad’s book is a celebration of journaling and the transformative power of daily creative expression, and includes essays and insights from 100 writers, artists, and creatives. Read the full essay: https://lnkd.in/e2E-WKCg

Emily Oberman and team have designed the brand identity and all collateral for Parla, a new concept cafe from Corner Table Restaurants, the group behind The Smith brasseries in New York, Washington, DC, and Chicago. Parla is an all-day neighborhood spot to gather for lively conversation over coffee, pizza and cocktails on New York’s Upper West Side. The name Parla is Italian for “speak,” and is also a play on saying the word “parlor” in native New Yorkese. The restaurant’s focus on warm hospitality and simple, quality ingredients is reflected in the playful visual language of the identity, which combines expressive typography and bright, saturated colors inspired by the period Italian graphics of the 1960s and 70s. Parla’s outgoing spirit is captured in the jaunty custom wordmark, with tightly spaced letterforms that lean in as though in conversation. Brand typography is set in the geometric sans serifs Halcyon and Area Extended and Normal. The logo can be used in patterns and is part of a full course of graphic elements that build out the brand: An icon holds a pair of “Ps” that face one another. Another symbol fans out the Parla “Ps” into a sunburst that also resembles the top of a tomato, or the folded paper wrappers used to package oranges in Italy. A round logotype puts the words “pizza” and “Parla” in rotation, playing on the name. And moving patterns of wavy stripes look just like spaghetti noodles. A system of simple geometric shapes reference the round and square pizzas, which are outlined in a poster that doubles as a menu, identifying varieties like the Hot Hunny, the Sonny Boy and the Pie Dye. The brand palette brings together appetizing colors with names like prosciutto, arugula and truffle. Outside, streetside tables in bright tomato orange and squash yellow announce Parla’s presence along the popular Columbus Avenue dining strip, where it has quickly become one of the neighborhood’s favorite pizza parlors, par excellence. Check out the full case study: https://lnkd.in/eVUQFiF4

If you fancy a drink and a look at some stunning bags, join us from 6.30pm on Thursday 17 July to celebrate our pop-up mini exhibition at Ally Capellino’s East London store. Expect prints, women’s and men’s bags and accessories, music and drinks. And don't worry if you can't make it on Thursday, as Ally will be selling Marina Willer’s ‘Overlooked’ prints throughout the summer. Please RSVP to london@pentagram.com, we look forward to seeing you all there! Ally Capellino 9 Calvert Ave, London E2 7JP www.allycapellino.co.uk

The John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation offers fellowships to exceptional individuals in any field of knowledge and creation, under the freest possible conditions. On the occasion of the organization’s 100th anniversary, Matt Willey and team have collaborated with the Foundation on a brand identity redesign, with strategy from Michael Bierut. The new identity reinforces the Foundation’s remarkable heritage and ongoing relevance. The team elevated the word “Fellowship” to the forefront of the organization’s communications, shifting focus to the transformative effects the grants have had on individual lives over the past century (It is a happy centennial coincidence that each of the words “Guggenheim,” “Foundation” and “Fellowship” have ten letters). Bold, all upper-case typography in a headline-like custom font emphasizes the contemporary relevance of the organization’s mission, and acknowledges the impact that each fellow has on his or her respective field of activity and on the world at large. Check out the full case study: https://lnkd.in/eEWuN_ZQ

Paula Scher and Piotr Woronkowicz have collaborated on a new brand identity and product design for ICD, a Seoul-based beauty brand rooted in cellular science and dedicated to the philosophy of functional beauty. With a global customer base and a growing cult following, the brand merges biotechnology with daily rituals, offering high-performance skincare and cosmetics designed for the modern self-care seeker. As ICD evolved into a more holistic, function-driven beauty brand, it became clear the visual identity no longer reflected its growing ambition. The brand approached Pentagram with a request: to reimagine its presence — physically and visually — in a way that felt both elevated and elemental. Beyond a refresh, ICD sought a deeper transformation: one that could resonate with a global audience, clarify its positioning, and embed a sense of ritual into the everyday. The new mark is a sculptural monogram of interlocking characters. A study in proportion and progression, each letter scales subtly in size, mirroring the form and function of the product. The packaging design became a vehicle for quiet innovation. Inspired by a familiar moment — the fumbling search for lip products in the bottom of a bag — the team introduced a solution hidden in plain sight. Magnets embedded in the cases allow the products to connect themselves into a larger form that clicks together, turning the unconscious frustration into a satisfying ritual. The result is a system that feels both considered and intuitive — a tactile extension of the brand’s belief in beauty as daily practice. Check out the full case study: https://lnkd.in/eNCugJHF

Pentagram LDN Yard Sale! Join us at 11 Needham Road on Saturday 19 July between 3pm and 6pm for an archive sale of posters, books and other Pentagram ephemera. All proceeds from the sale will go to the Grenfell Foundation (registered charity in England and Wales number 1177575). RSVP here if you'd like to come along: https://lnkd.in/ejMqzjyC