Minnesota Marine Art Museum

Branding

In May 2022, the Minnesota Marine Art Museum (MMAM) reached out to Banana Leaf Collective for help with a brand pivot that would reflect the organization’s current leadership transition and growth. While MMAM was not ready for a complete overhaul of its visual identity, the museum wanted a brand refresh that involved an updated logo; color palette; and typography guidelines.

RESEARCH

I worked closely with fellow Banana Leaf Collective member and public historian Andrea Manolov during the research phase of the project. We wanted to ground the design choices in Winona’s history, the local community, and MMAM’s place in them as much as possible. Our process involved historical research; case studies of museum rebranding projects; digging through MMAM’s community engagement data; and conversations with the MMAM team about their experiences, observations, and visions for the museum’s future.

LOGOS

The MMAM team requested minimal changes to their logo for this phase of the project. The updated logo uses one color as opposed to four. There are nine variations that can be used interchangeably depending on needs. The combination of increased weight and decreased tracking improves its readability, making it easier to read at smaller scales.

previous logo

COLOR PALETTE

The color palette was inspired by Winona’s history and geography.

TYPOGRAPHY