American Writers Museum
A cultural rebrand centered on new beginnings
Snapshot
Overview: A conceptual rebrand for the American Writers Museum in Chicago, created to help the institution re-engage visitors post-pandemic.
Role: Brand strategy, identity, copy
Deliverables: Brand concept, visual identity, logo design, messaging framework
Type: Concept
The Challenge
As museums reopened after the pandemic, the American Writers Museum needed a refresh that felt relevant and inviting, without alienating longtime supporters or leaning too heavily on academic tradition.
The challenge was to broaden the museum’s appeal while preserving its credibility and purpose.
Target Audience
Curious locals and out-of-town visitors, including literature enthusiasts, students, and casual museum-goers seeking engaging, contemporary cultural experiences.
The Insight
Literature is often perceived as static or historical, but writing itself is alive, evolving, responsive, and connected to the present moment.
The museum’s opportunity was to acknowledge writers of the past, while positioning itself as a place where stories continue to unfold.
Brand Concept
Explore the Next Chapter
The concept reframes the museum as a space of discovery and momentum, inviting visitors to see literature not as something finished, but as something ongoing, including their own relationship to storytelling.
Visitor Experience Line: Pick Your Journey
To bring the concept to life at a personal level, “Pick Your Journey” was developed as a secondary line that empowers visitors to navigate the museum based on their interests, genres, and curiosities, reinforcing the idea that every reader’s path through literature — and life — is different.
Visual Language
The visual system centers on perspective and forward motion.
The logo draws inspiration from architectural forms and the visual rhythm of a scrolling news ticker, reinforcing ideas of progress, narrative flow, and modern relevance. Typography emphasizes clarity and confidence, allowing content to feel accessible rather than academic.
Design Choices
- A typographic logo designed to suggest movement and progression
- Messaging that balances authority with approachability
- A visual system flexible enough to support exhibitions, wayfinding, and digital touchpoints
Outcome
The refreshed identity positions the American Writers Museum as a living cultural space that celebrates storytelling as an evolving force and invites visitors to actively engage with the next chapter of not just literary history, but their own lives as well.
