Insights from Dan O’Donnell, writer and art director, Partners + Napier.
Overview: The See Art campaign aimed to enhance visibility for the Rochester Contemporary Art Center (RoCo) by encouraging local engagement with the gallery’s exhibitions, promoting participation from local artists, and integrating art into daily life. The initiative employed posters, social media, and direct mail to increase awareness and support for RoCo’s nonprofit gallery and artist studios.
Creative Approach: Art permeates our environment, often reflected in everyday language. We began noticing the word ‘art’ embedded within common phrases, which led us to develop complete sentences that emphasized ‘art’. This concept evolved as we sought to create phrases with layered meanings. The most effective messages were those where the secondary meaning directly responded to the initial statement.
Obstacles: Achieving the right equilibrium between the primary headline and the secondary message was challenging. The latter needed to be noticeable without overshadowing the main line. We experimented with various typefaces and color combinations to strike the right balance in weight, hue, and design effects.
Highlights: A pleasant surprise emerged during the campaign’s social media component. Initially, we intended to use static versions of the posters for posts. However, during our pitch, we realized that the concept could be animated. Motion graphic designer Lori Meyer crafted an engaging animation where the secondary line illuminated like a flickering fluorescent light. This transformation turned a straightforward poster campaign into a multi-faceted media initiative, incorporating animated social posts and direct mail.
Visual Inspiration: Our design was influenced by artists such as Barbara Kruger, Stefan Sagmeister, and Fred Woodward, who skillfully blend conceptual ideas into their typography. In our project, both the primary and secondary lines function independently but provide a cohesive message when read sequentially.
Project Requirements: Collaborating with Bleu Cease, RoCo’s executive director and curator, was a rewarding experience. His deep understanding of design, color theory, and concepts allowed him to quickly grasp our vision and contribute creatively. He suggested the background grid, enhancing the type’s visibility.
At one point, he inquired about additional headlines. While the posters effectively attracted visitors to RoCo, he also needed to solicit submissions for the 6×6 exhibition. We adapted some designs from ‘seeing art’ to ‘making art,’ which were then distributed as direct mail.
 | Communication Arts Source: https://www.commarts.com/exhibit/rochester-contemporary-art-center-campaign Communication Arts is the largest international trade journal of visual communication. Founded in 1959 by Richard Coyne and Robert Blanchard, the magazine's coverage includes graphic design, advertising, photography, illustration, typography and interactive media. |
