Portland Art Museum

An art museum is more than just a building. It’s the art it contains and the people who love it. PAM’s new identity celebrates all three.

CHALLENGE

The Portland Art Museum, established in 1892, is the city’s only major art museum, but had long struggled to connect with Portlanders. The Museum’s donors were dwindling, and a new generation wasn’t recognizing the value of this great resource.

SOLUTION

Ziba created a new brand identity for the Portland Art Museum that reflected the heart and soul of the Museum, while appealing to a new, younger target audience. This flexible identity system can highlight a detail, a character or even a mood. It’s a logo at times, but more important, it emphasizes the experience of the museum, acting like a window onto its collection. PAM's new identity also functions as a frame, inviting visitors in to explore the Museum for themselves.

IMPACT

Portland Art Museum’s new brand identity was introduced in the fall of 2011, and over the next two years rolled out across all of their branded touchpoints. Within the Museum, the response has been overwhelmingly positive, with staff and visitors alike remarking on the way it highlights the institution's collection and resources, consistently and approachably. In the broader Portland community, the identity sparked renewed interest in the museum, leading to a 35% increase in donations, ultimately allowing construction of a planned new building to break ground two years ahead of schedule.