Asian Art Museum Brand Strategy

The Asian Art Museum was redefining its identity under new leadership. As Creative Director, I led the brand strategy, building on the Wolf Olins foundation to create a more contemporary, welcoming, and pan-Asian visual identity informed by audience research, institutional data, and stakeholder input.

Role
Creative Direction
Brand Strategy

Skills
Audience Research
Brand Strategy
Visual Identity
Art Direction

Team
Creative Direction: Sky Alsgaard
Photographer: Kevin Candland
Brand Designers: Sky Alsgaard & Desirée Sapphire

THE CHALLENGE

The Asian Art Museum was entering a new chapter under the leadership of Director and CEO Dr. Soyoung Lee. While the 2013 Wolf Olins identity remained a strong foundation, more than a decade of use had led to fragmentation across the brand. The opportunity was to evolve the museum’s identity into a more contemporary, welcoming, and pan-Asian system while preserving the equity of the existing brand.

RESEARCH & STRATEGY

Before exploring visual directions, I developed a strategic understanding of the museum’s current position by synthesizing audience research, institutional data, and stakeholder priorities.

Key areas of focus included:

Comparing historical audience research with newly collected visitor feedback.
Identifying opportunities to strengthen audience connection and institutional relevance.
Evaluating how the existing brand system was succeeding—and where it had become fragmented.
Developing strategic recommendations to guide the museum’s evolving identity.

BRAND SYSTEM

Building on the Wolf Olins foundation, I developed a more flexible design system that could scale across the museum while improving consistency and usability.

The refreshed system included:

Updated typography.
A refined and modernized color palette.
Templates for signage, wayfinding, marketing, development, and email communications.
Expanded internal brand guidelines to support consistent implementation across departments.

VISUAL LANGUAGE

A central goal of the strategy was creating an identity that reflected the breadth of Asia rather than any single culture. I developed a series of graphic artworks inspired by 16th-century Chinese puppets, chosen for their energy and contemporary spirit. To unify the system, I reimagined the puppets in a warm, cohesive palette and paired them with a modern abstract pattern. The result is a visual identity that feels distinctly Asian without being tied to a single culture, reflecting the diversity of the 26 countries represented by the museum.

The visual language extended beyond graphics into photography. I led the development of the museum’s photography style, overseeing photographer selection, casting, contracts, production planning, and art direction to create a cohesive image library used across museum communications, social media, digital platforms, and environmental graphics.

VISITOR EXPERIENCE

The brand strategy extended beyond marketing materials to reimagine the visitor experience throughout the museum. The goal was to simplify navigation, reduce visual clutter, and create a more welcoming and intuitive experience from arrival through the galleries.

Deliverables:

Visitor guide
Museum maps
Wayfinding
Exhibition signage
Digital displays

BRAND IMPLEMENTATION

The first phase of the brand strategy introduced the refreshed identity across public-facing communications, environmental graphics, and institutional materials. The museum’s 2025 Annual Meeting served as an important milestone in the rollout, marking the first major presentation of the new direction under Director and CEO Dr. Soyoung Lee.

Museum Communications