A Massachusetts-based ninja gym chain is opening a new branch in a new location, aiming to be a new flagship branch. This gave plentiful new opportunities for new brand expressions and placemaking.
I was inspired by Muybridge's photography to translate these intensely kinetic movements to a static design that still conveys that sense of movement.
I took the footage from a particularly good run from one of the gym's competition livestreams, tracked the athlete's foot, stretched it out, and used that kinetic information to inform the bottom of a halftone design that went along with existing branding elements and also blocked the sun in an effective way.
These concepts – 2B assisted by another Arrowstreet designer – take the hexagon motif from the gym's existing branding and push it, keeping the same motion line from Concept 1 but replacing the small circular halftone with a much larger hexagonal interpretation.
These concepts step back to square one to re-interpret what the placemaking efforts of a gym should look like. Long ribbons impart a strong pull of horizontal motion, pulling viewers around the front corner to the main entrance on the side.
