Merit Award
MoMA QNS
Location
Queens, NY
Design Firms
Two Twelve Associates, New York, NY; Base Design, New York, NY; Michael Maltzan Architecture, Los Angeles, CA
Design Team
David Gibson (Principal), Cesar Sanchez (Associate/Project Manager), Yanira Hernandez (Designer, 212), Pamela Paul (Junior Designer) at Two Twelve Associates; Geoff Cook (Project Manager), Vincent Sahli (Designer), Ben Ferencz (Designer) at Base Design; Michael Maltzan (Principal) at Michael Maltzan Architecture
Fabricators
Display Graphics, Visual Graphic Systems
Client
Cooper, Robertson & Partners
The exterior and interior signage express a dynamic, creative spirit unique to the building's urban site and temporary function. Supergraphics painted on rooftop fixtures and on the building façade communicate a visual identity consistent with MoMA's home building in Manhattan. The large-scale logos make it easy for the visitor to locate MoMA QNS in the cityscape from a distance, especially important since Queens is not a traditional tourist destination, and most visitors approach via elevated subway train. For the interior sign system, the EGD consultants modified elements of the MoMA QNS brand graphics developed by Base Design, adjusting the proportions of the typefaces, pictograms, and other elements to work in larger sizes and on 3-D surfaces. For the large, open interior public spaces, identification and directional messages were silk-screened directly onto the walls, preserving the visual integrity of the space. To address the issue of wear, many of the hard-working interior signs were fabricated out of Corian®, which is strong enough to hold up to heavy visitor traffic and the urban environment.
Jury Comment
"The multi-part animated exterior sign and its integration into the architecture is exceptional! It provides an exterior branding for the museum that is memorable and direct. The simplicity of execution and the expressive dynamic creativity communicate immediately and on many levels. The budget is quite small for such a bold statement."