Client
Tulane University
Year
2023
Services
Branding, Creative Direction

Building a modern brand for Tulane University’s esteemed water research institute.

PROJECT OVERVIEW

The ByWater Institute is a nationally recognized environmental research institute focused on solutions science that addresses the grand challenges facing the ecosystems, communities and businesses along coastlines and rivers of the US.

In 2016, Tulane University launched the ByWater Institute with a clear vision: to lead the innovation of water research using a transdisciplinary approach—first in the Mississippi River Basin (MRB), with the goal of scaling its blueprint across national and global efforts. ByWater’s overriding goal: Help create cities, coastlines and river basins in the region and beyond that are Thriving ByWater in an era of increasing climate extremes.

TYPE INSPIRED BY INFRASTRUCTURE

Inspired by the junctions of levees within the Basin, we intentionally chose Noi Grotesk, with its heavy inktraps to visually represent this infrastructure. We then developed these intersections into a recurring brand element.

BUILDING WITHIN THE TULANE BRAND

Working within the Tulane University brand system, we were tasked with finding creative ways to incorporate elements of the parent brand while introducing new and fresh elements unique to the ByWater brand. We brought in typefaces Caslon and Freight Sans Pro, while crafting a custom ByWater Blue color that paired well with the existing blues within the Tulane color palette.

PHOTOGRAPHY + ART DIRECTION

Building upon the confident and optimistic vision of the ByWater Institute, we sought an art direction style that embodied their humble yet confident expertise in the field.

Shot on the levees in Algier’s Point, New Orleans, these photos showcase a team that is diligent and confident in their academia. As we continued to develop the brand’s photography, we partnered with Virginia Hanusik, a former resident of the BWI’s A Studio In The Woods program. Licensing her beautifully haunting images of the New Orleans waterways deepens the connection to the work that the ByWater Institute is doing.

Creative Director: Rebecca Brooker
Design: Marcelo Hoff, André Cândido

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