Planet Word Museum
A Brand Identity Case Study
Project Type
Branding Identity, Logo Design, Brand Guidelines
Tools
Adobe Indesign, Illustrator, & Photoshop
Located in DC at the historic Franklin School, Planet Word “is the only museum in the country dedicated to renewing and inspiring a love of words and language.” The goal of this case study is to create a brand identity that maintains the youthful color palette of the current branding while pulling in traditional elements from the architecture of the landmark school building.
Inital Conceptualization and Challenges
When entering the initial research phase for this project, I was drawn to the architecture and history of the Franklin School, now the home of Planet Word. When sketching, I wanted to maintain the whimsical feel of the original branding and energy of the interactive exhibits with the spirit of the Frankin School. I leaned too much into the fun, modern feel in my initial logo sketches. With the help of my peers, I discovered that working with paragraph markers, lines, and window imagery brought architecture to the forefront, and I was able to refine that idea and settle on a twist on the paragraph marker. To ensure the new branding maintained whimsy, I chose a bright and bold color palette. I created patterns incorporating logo elements while keeping in line with the branding but adding another fun element.
About Planet Word
Located in DC at the historic Franklin School, Planet Word “is the only museum in the country dedicated to renewing and inspiring a love of words and language.” Through interactive experiences, they strive to make the museum fun, playful, unexpected, motivational, meaningful, and inclusive. These are their six core values.
Planet Word was started by Ann B. Friedman, a retired first grade reading teacher, who found inspiration from the Museum of Mathematics in New York City– an interactive museum focused on fun, educational activities focused on math. She wondered what if there was a place like that, but for words, reading, and language? That’s how Planet Word was born. Planet Word is committed to the community by partnering with groups who serve children and adults with low literacy. They strongly believe that literacy is the foundation of a strong democracy. “Planet Word is a bold and imaginative response to the life-long importance of literacy”
Museum Mission
Planet Word will inspire and renew a love of words, language, and reading in people of all ages. Located in DC at the historic Franklin School, Planet Word “is the only museum in the country dedicated to renewing and inspiring a love of words and language.” Through immersive, interactive learning experiences, they strive to make the museum fun, playful, unexpected, motivational, meaningful, and inclusive. Planet Word is a bold and imaginative response to the life-long importance of literacy.
Rebrand Strategy
The aim was to create a brand identity that maintains the bold, carefree color palette of Planet Word’s current branding while pulling in traditional elements from the architecture of the historic school building where the museum is housed. The resulting logomark is a take on a paragraph marker that resembles the windows of the Franklin School and has a modern edge fitting with the sans-serif typefaces used in the wordmark and overall branding. The goal was to create something simple, but potentially iconic
"Words change over time. You can look at a word, and sometimes discern its history and where it came from. It’s sort of the same thing with the bones of a historic structure. We want you to be able to see the history of where it came from.”
-Ann B. Friedman, Planet Word Founder
