Branding: Gensler Studio 585

Grace Ong Yan contributed her branding & design expertise to global architecture firm, Gensler’s Studio 585, in which design practice was re-envisioned as interdisciplinary collaboration. 

Grace's expertise was important in shaping the following projects: Bally branding strategy and airport concept store, International Center for Photography (ICP) branding & wayfinding, Thompson Financial branding & event space, and Grace Plaza branding in front of the SOM-designed W.R. Grace Building in New York. 

 

Branding strategy for Bally, the Swiss leather goods company, included an articulation of their brand for many environments and audiences.  Grace, as a team member of Studio 585, came up with a brand matrix as well as the design of a Bally airp…

Branding strategy for Bally, the Swiss leather goods company, included an articulation of their brand for many environments and audiences.  Grace, as a team member of Studio 585, came up with a brand matrix as well as the design of a Bally airport store at London Heathrow Airport. 

One key element in the branding strategy for the International Center for Photography was a centralized calendar of the school's events.  A flexible display system would house a photography exhibition and calendar of events. 

One key element in the branding strategy for the International Center for Photography was a centralized calendar of the school's events.  A flexible display system would house a photography exhibition and calendar of events. 

A branding strategy was proposed for the late-modern, SOM-designed Grace Plaza in midtown Manhattan. A desolate plaza needed lively inhabitation-- a flexible installation was speculatively designed to activate the public space.  A yellow cube o…

A branding strategy was proposed for the late-modern, SOM-designed Grace Plaza in midtown Manhattan. A desolate plaza needed lively inhabitation-- a flexible installation was speculatively designed to activate the public space.  A yellow cube of geometrical pieces would be disassembled to create seating around the plaza. Each yellow volume had a sense-focused word printed on it- hot, soothing, fuzzy, sticky, shiny.... through text, the human senses would be piqued, fostering human inhabitation. 

Envisioning the Bally brand as a matrix for their various environments and audiences, from the ultimate flagship store to boutiques, wholesale showrooms, to duty free airport stores, and to soft store in store installations.  In all the va…

Envisioning the Bally brand as a matrix for their various environments and audiences, from the ultimate flagship store to boutiques, wholesale showrooms, to duty free airport stores, and to soft store in store installations.  In all the various environments, the Bally branding would vary yet be immediately recognizable.   

Branding for the International Center for Photography School in New York City included a bold ceiling graphic in defining their identity.  From the initial contact in the entrance pavilion, a linear signage system would continue the brand ident…

Branding for the International Center for Photography School in New York City included a bold ceiling graphic in defining their identity.  From the initial contact in the entrance pavilion, a linear signage system would continue the brand identity throughout the underground spaces. 

The branding strategy for Thompson Financial Services defined the company in a lower manhattan skyscraper. From the building lobby at the ground floor to the company lobby, to the event space, a dynamic brand was defined through the color blue, and …

The branding strategy for Thompson Financial Services defined the company in a lower manhattan skyscraper. From the building lobby at the ground floor to the company lobby, to the event space, a dynamic brand was defined through the color blue, and high tech aesthetic exemplifying the company's cutting edge service.