Seattle Asian Art Museum

Seattle’s Asian Art Museum perches on a hill above the city, set amongst the mature trees of Volunteer Park. The building was slated for a major renovation and expansion. As part of this effort we were asked to update a wayfinding system that was woefully out of date. We removed decades of tacked-on, mismatched signage, replacing it instead with a restrained system of contemporary symbols and typography that was visually sympathetic to the architecture.

As we methodically documented the old signage in the early stages of the project, we spotted all kinds of gorgeous Art Deco details. From air vents to handrails, unique patterns and linework were to be found everywhere. We photographed these details and turned them into a series of patterns for use by the Museum. They now appear on wrapping paper, tote bags and mugs, and the refreshed building is ready to serve the next 100 years of patrons.