The Spectra – A Colorful Update of a 100 Year Old Building on Telegraph

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How do you take a building over century old and bring it to the 21st century? 

RadiantBrands had the opportunity to work with a client in the middle of a massive renovation of older student apartment block only a short distance from the UC Berkeley Campus. They wanted a name and look that reflected the refresh of the building. They wanted to let students know this was not a drab place from the last century but a lively and intriguing place with a new and contemporary look inside. The name that had been chosen was from an author who actually lived in the building. It was from a poem writing titled “Spectra”. An unusual piece printed in a book of poetic experiments published in 1916 by American writers Witter Bynner Arthur and Davison Ficke.  The writer, Bynner Arthur, was the one who lived in the building which was constructed in 1914. They wanted to let students know this was not a drab place from the last century but a lively and intriguing place with a new and contemporary look inside. We thought the best approach to brand design was to play off the meaning of spectrum. Given the older brick building was very monochromatic we could see that bringing a bright, rainbow-mix of colors would pop out and give attention to the building and the location. It’s also an image that plays off of more flamboyant days of Telegraph Avenue from the 1960’s. As a result, Radiant developed a circular mark with bright rainbow colors and a vibrant image of the building. The simple design lends itself to signage and other applications and uses throughout the interior.   [/et_pb_text][/et_pb_column][/et_pb_row][/et_pb_section]