Pentagram's bold new identity for Cooper Hewitt Museum

New year, new projects from the irrepressible Pentagram, this time in the form of some striking 3D work for the recently renovated and reopened Cooper Hewitt Museum in New York. Pentagram’s Michael Gericke and Eddie Opara have announced their graphic identity for the newly-expanded space, developing a physical word mark that works hard with the limitations of the listed building that houses the collection.

Most impressive is the signage that now fronts the museum – a pair of three-dimensional type treatments that hover in space as if on a screen, weaving between the railings of the museum’s fence – sculptural wayfinding devices designed to engage with pedestrians on 90th Street and Fifth Avenue. Inside the supergraphics continue, with colourful directories, 3D signage and large-scale icons to direct the public through the space.

All of these elements are brought together with the use of a single custom-designed typeface, Cooper Hewitt, made by Pentagram in collaboration with Village. As well as appearing on all branded materials the new font is available to the public for free as an incentive for users to create their own designs with it – a nice touch for such a public-facing space.