Fertile Ground:
Art & Community in California

Fertile Ground:
Art and Community in California

at Oakland Museum of California
in partnership with SFMOMA on-the-go

ROLE: lead graphic designer, art director, copywriter

SCOPE: identity and branding, illustrated design elements, advertising, event collateral, product development, in-gallery panels and consultation

 

Fertile Ground: Art and Community in California was a collaboration between the Oakland Museum of California and SFMOMA as part of their On-the-Go series of exhibitions.

Depending on the outlet, designs needed to appeal to very different audiences, so flexibility within a system was key from the outset. Chosen artworks, type treatments, and copy joined forces for the most effective result.

Some challenges of the project included elegant incorporation of lengthy credits for the exhibition and featured artworks; collaboration with another institution across curatorial, marketing, membership, and other interests; and passing branding along to a separate in-house team for in-gallery deployment, led by Dave Gottwald.

Fertile Ground entry panel. Image shows titling treatment in white on a charcoal-colored billboard panel, with golden yellow hatchings, and entry doors to the right. Photo © OMCA by Johnna Arnold.
Fertile Ground curatorial statement in three languages. Image shows three oversized panels of dark gray with white text, yellow titling, and yellow hatching at the bottom. Photo © OMCA by Johnna Arnold.
Fertile Ground in-gallery titling and section panels with artist illustration. Image shows a burgundy wall with a framed painting next to a word map of artist names, connected by delicate painted lines. Photo © OMCA by Johnna Arnold.
Fertile Ground -inspired gifts of California Poppy seeds. Digital mockup of product created to promote event, in brand colors of burgundy, white, and golden yellow with a screened-back hatching pattern.

Variety and legacy

 

Fertile Ground needed to serve the visitor and highlight the collections of two exacting clients: SFMOMA and OMCA. Both teams contributed feedback and had varied needs and requirements. Building in the time to answer to both required careful management.

The show’s content covered the breadth of the 20th Century, meaning the branding needed to respond to that. Of course, it still needed to be strong enough for a massive marketing campaign.

animated web ad

 

Copywriting was an unusual task for this project; the team was interested in a gossipy, behind-the-scenes tone focusing on the connections between artists. It was a fun exploration, and in the end, the strength of the named artists shone.

on-campus billboard in four adjacent panels

 

Advertising elements included billboards, web ads, email campaigns, and bus ads. Working with “sacred” images that could not be cropped required flexibility and made full use of the color and illustrated background image.

email campaign to Members for an event

 

The email campaign for the opening event needed to match the printed piece, designed with diecuts.