Loyalkaspar creates identity for new children's museum Moxi

Moxi, The Wolf Museum of Exploration + Innovation is the name of a new children's museum that is due to open in Santa Barbara, California next year. It is designed by be a place where children can learn through play. The entire identity, including strategy, naming and visuals, was developed by Loyalkaspar. (Incidentally, the logo was revealed almost a year ago but the project has not really received the attention it deserves.)

Moxi is marketed as "A Playground for Your Brain" and positioned as "a hub for learning, creativity and innovation". An additional benefit in the name is that four letters acronyms beginning with Mo- are generally associated with museum names (e. g. MoMA). The applications use bright primary colours and minimal graphics. The logo has an offset tittle over the I, suggesting "someone leaning forward to look closer and interact".







See also: Loyalkaspar's case study

Press release in full:

Bicoastal creative agency loyalkaspar has developed the strategy and identity, including name and logo for MOXI, The Wolf Museum of Exploration + Innovation (MOXI), a new children’s museum in Santa Barbara set to open in 2016. The mission of MOXI is to ignite learning through innovative, interactive experiences that empower curious minds.

Partnering with the board of directors and naming benefactors Noelle and Dick Wolf, loyalkaspar developed all aspects of the MOXI brand, including the naming, logo, brand strategy, tagline, visual identity, tone and voice.

The tagline, “A Playground for Your Brain,” and the name MOXI connote a hub for learning, creativity and innovation, while working within the acronymous museum lexicon (i.e. MoMA and MoCA, etc.).

”MOXI is the kind of name that operates on a number of levels – an anagram with real meaning, as well as a word that inspires enthusiasm and reflects drive and commitment,” says Dick Wolf. “In short, they’ve created a brand. We’re very grateful.”

“From conception to strategy-building to design, we apply the same branding principles and process to all of our clients,“ says loyalkaspar Executive Creative Director Richard Eng. “In fact, much like the entertainment brands we create, branding this museum boiled down to storytelling and making audience connections. MOXI’s most prominent touchpoint is the physical space itself, so this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to create something lasting.”

Loyalkaspar created MOXI’s modern, minimal yet playful identity to work across all media, including print collateral, such as press materials, brochures and business cards, as well as digital.

Bright primary colors reinforce the pillars of the brand, which loyalkaspar identified as contagiously curious, fun-forward, community-committed, energetic and playfully powerful through the principles of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics). Thus, the inherent challenge became creating an identity that would cater to curious minds of all ages, including parents.

“The goal of this museum is to be more than just brick and mortar or a play area for kids,” says Eng. “They’ve created a progressive, mixed-use space that engages every attendee’s STEAM values, regardless of age, and nurtures their creativity. There’s no other museum like it.”

This idea of all-encompassing engagement played into the creation of the logo, which appeals to a broader contemporary audience by expressing the museum’s fun-forward approach with a timeless aesthetic. loyalkaspar slightly offset the “i” as if to suggest the viewer to lean in and interact. The team also created a round, geometric-inspired custom font for the brand.

“Working with the MOXI team and the Wolfs has been a wonderful continued experience,” concludes Eng. “We had their top-level trust and were able to bring our art and expertise while they were fantastic collaborators, offering invaluable dialogue and feedback. Everyone was truly engaged and invested in the success of this endeavor in the hope that through our different practices and experiences, we can make it exceptional.”

Full credits:

Creative Agency: loyalkaspar
Principal/President: David Herbruck
Principal/Chief Creative Officer: Beat Baudenbacher
Partner/Chief Development Officer: Robert Blatchford
Executive Creative Director: Richard Eng
Head of Production: Jessica Scharer
Director of Strategy and Content: Bo Bishop
Senior Producer: Susan Harris
Associate Producer: Sophia Richard
Writer/Strategist: Mika Saulitis
Senior Designer: J Collins