Building an iconic identity for an iconic institution.

The launch of the Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa, the continent’s largest institution of its kind, marked a major cultural milestone for Africa, and for the world. But before this iconic destination was ready to welcome the public, it needed a brand identity that was as unique, as distinctive, as iconic as the museum itself. This was our challenge: to create branding – a whole visual language – for Zeitz MOCAA that would do justice to its significance, while capturing its spirit.

The design concept was rooted in what already existed – an old grain silo – and what it was to become – an art museum. We began by distilling this multi-faceted destination into an elementary, but impactful graphic. The blueprint of the historic silo, which comprises 42 vertical concrete cylinders, served as inspiration for a beautifully simple design grid. And from this grid, we created the brand’s logo, its iconography, its distinctive typeface, and its entire visual system.

Then we really started to play. We wanted to ensure that the museum’s brand identity captured the vibrant, diverse and ever-evolving nature of contemporary African art. So we developed an aesthetic language that’s as dynamic as the destination. The design grid now morphs, adapts to its environment, and flits between colour combinations that speak to the surface it’s on or the artwork it’s nearest.