The Institute of Contemporary Art Baltimore was a non-collecting arts organization promoting mid-career artists. Originally nomadic, the ICA moved to a permanent gallery space in Baltimore while continuing to work with artists in site-specific locations. As a growing organization, the ICA needed a logo, identity system and website to help them promote upcoming exhibitions in diverse physical spaces. Q Collective created a flexible identity that easily adapts to a variety of environments.
We started our design process by looking at potential combinations of the letters I, C, and A in different typefaces. We experimented with forms that are dynamic, modern and modular to represent the ICA’s mission and vision. Adding shapes, lines and patterns we explored how the letters and logo elements could be altered, repeated or changed for different applications. To further test form, we placed shapes on photographs to determine if they would remain recognizable on complex backgrounds.