Shape Arts

Our trio of innovative and visually-articulate digital exhibitions for the pivotal disability-led arts organisation

Website
Branding
The logo for the Shape Arts exhibition 'All Bound Together?'. Displayed on a square-shaped red background, the thick white sans-serif of the logo is surrounded by two intersecting, thread-like, zigzagging lines in a spooling loop, one in black, one in white.
The logo for the Shape Arts exhibition 'Empty When Full', a visual, inverted representation of the half-empty, half-full proverb. The words ’empty when’ appear in the gravitationally impossible full part of the top of the glass, which is depicted by a black background with white bubbles floating near the top, whereas the word ‘full’ in black appears within the empty, white bottom of the glass.
The logo for the exhibition ‘In the mirror’, displayed on a blue background. The logo consists of a digital illustration of several blue angular panels overlaid across each other with differing levels of opacity and inset corners. Spread across the two frontmost panels in a decorative serif typeface are the words ‘In the mirror’ in black, with a semi-opaque mirrored version of these words in a light blue across the two back panels.
Our logos for All Bound Together?, Empty When Full and In the Mirror

Digital spaces

To date we have worked with Shape Arts on branding and website design for three of their digital exhibitions—their 2021 Shape Open entitled All Bound Together?, their 2022 exhibition as part of their Adam Reynolds Award programme, Empty When Full, and the 2022 Shape Open, In the Mirror.

Working with Frontwards on All Bound Together? was a genuinely exciting and collaborative process. The show would not be the same without them!

Elinor Hayes Creative Producer: Content and Comms
The homepage of ‘In the mirror’ viewed on a desktop screen. A blue, white and black logo sits at the top-centre of the screen, which has a gradient fading from blue at the top to white at the bottom as its background. The logo consists of a digital illustration of several blue angular panels overlaid across each other with differing levels of opacity and inset corners. Spread across the two frontmost panels in a decorative serif typeface are the words ‘In the mirror’ in black, with a semi-opaque mirrored version of these words in a light blue across the two back panels. The date ‘30 June 2022 – 12 August 2022’ appears below this. A section of text below this is headed with the word ‘Introduction’ with the introductory text truncated by the crop. At the very top right of the screen is a navigational menu, listing the items 'Exhibition’, ‘Catalogue’ and ‘Information’.

In the mirror

In culture, mirrors are used to symbolise truth. It is also said that art is a mirror turned on society, reflecting the issues and mood of the current moment. In this way, the artist interrogates and sheds light, revealing things that might otherwise be disguised or hidden.

For disabled people, however, too often what they find in the cultural mirror is distorted, filled with representations that are not only untrue, but harmful, damaging to individuals and communities.

This exhibition, part of the 10th annual Shape Open, treats the subject of disability differently, using the lens of lived experience. Taking place in an age when mirrors are everywhere, even in our phones, it challenges the processes and assumptions that forge our ideas of who we are, and how we are shown.

A crop of the Exhibition page of ‘In the mirror’ viewed on a desktop screen. A white bar sits horizontally at the very top of the screen, containing a navigational menu, listing the item ‘Artists’ followed by a blue diamond motif to its left and the items 'Exhibition’, ‘Catalogue’ and ‘Information’ to its right. A second white bar sits vertically to the left margin of the screen, overlaid with a series of evenly spaced horizontal lines like a ruler or tape measure. In its centre is a right-pointing, boxy, blue arrow with the fraction ‘8 of 28’ shown on it. Taking up most of the screen are two semi-truncated images. Both images appear to be photographs, although they might have been digitally generated, and have jet black backgrounds atop which is what looks like some kind of waveform. The top image has a purple, more cylindrically shaped wave, while the bottom has a yellow, more spiral-shaped waveform.
A crop of the Exhibition page of ‘In the mirror’ viewed on a smartphone-sized screen. A white bar sits horizontally at the very top of the screen, containing the words 'Exhibition’, ‘Catalogue’ and ‘Information’. A second white bar sits vertically to the left margin of the screen, overlaid with a series of evenly spaced horizontal lines like a ruler or tape measure. In its centre is a right-pointing, blue arrow. Alongside are four vertically stacked paintings. Only a sliver of the topmost painting is visible within the crop. The second painting eerily depicts, with a drab, bleak palette mostly made up of greys, a metallic sink containing an oversized, dead dragonfly lying on its back, the end of its abdomen bent to 90 degrees. The third painting depicts a person with a very wide head, their features occupying only a tiny, central part of the face. They wear an expression that's a mixture of disgruntlement, confusion and disbelief. The fourth painting is mostly cropped, but the visible portion appears to be a close-up of the second painting. At the very bottom of the image is a third white bar containing, on its left, '10/28' and on its right the word ‘Artists’ followed by a blue diamond motif.
A crop of the Exhibition page of ‘In the mirror’ viewed on a smartphone-sized screen. A white bar sits horizontally at the very top of the screen, containing the words 'Exhibition’, ‘Catalogue’ and ‘Information’. A second white bar sits vertically to the left margin of the screen, overlaid with a series of evenly spaced horizontal lines like a ruler or tape measure. In its centre is a right-pointing, blue arrow. From the top of the screen comes a large, blue square frame with inset corners and white borders, displaying the words ‘Your head isn’t as big as it looks in the mirror’ in a decorative serif typeface in black. Below this is the name ‘Fredrick Ingoldby’. Behind this frame is a gradient background running from a mid-grey at the top of the screen to black at the screen’s bottom, which is gradually revealing the artwork below. At the very bottom of the image is a third white bar containing, on its left, '10/28' and on its right the word ‘Artists’ followed by a blue diamond motif.
A crop of the Exhibition page of ‘In the mirror’ viewed on a desktop screen. A white bar sits horizontally at the very top of the screen, containing a navigational menu, listing the item ‘Artists’ followed by a blue diamond motif to its left and the items 'Exhibition’, ‘Catalogue’ and ‘Information’ to its right. A second white bar sits vertically to the left margin of the screen, overlaid with a series of evenly spaced horizontal lines like a ruler or tape measure. In its centre is a right-pointing, boxy, blue arrow with the fraction ‘15 of 28’ shown on it. Taking up most of the screen are two semi-truncated images. Both images are scenes of domestic violence created by small plastic models. Displayed in a clear perspex box, the models are arranged to show a kitchen scene with two characters. The top image is a birds-eye view of the room, showing a cooker, shelving unit, two chairs (one upturned) and a woman holding a broom coming through a doorway. In the bottom image a man sits on a chair, while a short way behind him, a woman approaches with a raised broom.

Through the looking-glass

Our logo design explores the multiple layers, reflections and transparency or lack thereof reflected in the lenses of the artistic experiences of the works. Taking the exhibition’s theme as a portal to both these truths and societal distortions, our aesthetic approach employs the repetitive form of the mirror’s frame as a simple graphical motif of a block with inset corners as a nod to traditional, more decorative representations of mirrors throughout historical consciousness.

Typographically, we opted to use a display typeface called Wayfinder CF for titles and headers alongside our ongoing use of Atkinson Hyperlegible. Thematically, its bold, elegant and ever-so-dramatic letterforms hint at the folk and fairytale contexts of ‘the mirror’ — “mirror, mirror on the wall”, Alice Through the Looking-Glass and so on.

As part of the user experience we also wanted to explore the concept of slightly ‘gamifying’ the journey through the works via sliding panels that reveal the content, alongside the ruler and dynamic counter to the left of the screen—creating yet another partial frame in which the works are placed.

Visit In the Mirror
The homepage of ‘Empty When Full’ viewed on a desktop screen. At the very top left of the screen is a diamond-shaped motif alongside the words 'You are here: Exhibition' and opposite this in the top-right corner are the words 'Information’ and 'Process'. Underneath is the exhibition logo, which is a visual, inverted representation of the half-empty, half-full proverb. The words ’empty when’ appear in the gravitationally impossible full part of the top of the glass, which is depicted by a black background with white bubbles floating near the top, whereas the word ‘full’ in black appears within the empty, white bottom of the glass. The date ‘25 February 2022 – 8 April 2022’ appears alongside the logo, sitting just above the names
A page from the ‘Empty When Full’ website, viewed on a smartphone screen. The background colour is a hazy gradient which fades from a misty green, through murky oranges and yellows, and into a sleepy sunset pink. A dashed white border sits above a black diamond-shaped motif alongside the words

Empty When Full

Taking direct inspiration from Johanna Hedva’s artwork GLUT: a superabundance of nothing— created as part of Shape’s 2021 Adam Reynolds Award—Empty When Full looks to expose the illusions generated by the intersection of technology and freedom in four newly commissioned works by artists Jay Price, MH Sarkis, Li Yilei and Keira Fox.

The homepage of ‘Empty When Full’ viewed on a smartphone screen. Centred at the very top of the screen are the words 'Exhibition', 'Information’ and 'Process', the first of which is underlined. Underneath is the exhibition logo, which is a visual, inverted representation of the half-empty, half-full proverb. The words ’empty when’ appear in the gravitationally impossible full part of the top of the glass, which is depicted by a black background with white bubbles floating near the top, whereas the word ‘full’ in black appears within the empty, white bottom of the glass. The date ‘25 February 2022 – 8 April 2022’ appears below the logo, sitting just above the names
The homepage of ‘Empty When Full’ viewed on a desktop screen. At the very top left of the screen is a diamond-shaped motif alongside the words 'You are here: Exhibition' and opposite this in the top-right corner are the words 'Information’ and 'Process'. Below this, the page has a black background and white text. A dashed white border sits above a two-by-two grid of rectangular panels with white borders, which is preceded by another diamond motif alongside the words 'The Exhibition'. The first panel contains the text 'Angoscia—Keira Fox', the second 'In Times Like These—Li Yilei', the third 'Canaries—Jay Price' and the fourth 'Vagus—MH Sarkis'.

A paradoxical approach

Our commission for the logo and aesthetic of Empty When Full was inspired by an enthralling brief that took into account the concepts of paradoxes, the Voight-Kampff test, Schrodinger’s cat, optical illusions / Op Art and so on!

For the logo itself, we created something that had a pseudo-scientific, diagrammatic quality and contained linear elements that were part optical illusion / part glitch. Inspired by the playfulness of the title, we conjured up a visual representation of the half-empty, half-full proverb—in this context juxtaposing the word ‘empty’ to appear in the gravitationally impossible full part of the top of the glass, and the word ‘full’ within an empty void at the bottom, defined by a linear / glitchy op art stroke.

A page from the ‘Empty When Full’ website, viewed on a desktop screen, which has black text and a background made up of a hazy gradient which fades, from left to right, from a misty green, through murky oranges and yellows, and into a sleepy sunset pink. At the very top left of the screen is a diamond-shaped motif alongside the words 'You are here: Exhibition > In Times Like These, Li Yilei' and opposite this in the top-right corner are the words 'Information’ and 'Process'. In the very centre of the screen are the words 'In Times Like These—Li Yilei' in a large, serif font, which is enclosed by two circles, one inside the other, both outlined in thin white wavy lines.
A page from the ‘Empty When Full’ website, viewed on a desktop screen, which has a medium grey background and black text. At the very top left of the screen is a diamond-shaped motif alongside the words 'You are here: Exhibition > Angoscia, Keira Fox' and opposite this in the top-right corner are the words 'Information’ and 'Process'. Underneath, the main portion of the page is entirely empty, aside from the words 'Angoscia—Keira Fox' in a very large, glitchy, monospaced font.
A page from the ‘Empty When Full’ website, viewed on a desktop screen, which has a light sky-blue background and black text. At the very top left of the screen is a diamond-shaped motif alongside the words 'You are here: Exhibition > Canaries, Jay Price' and opposite this in the top-right corner are the words 'Information' and 'Process'. Underneath, the main portion of the page consists of a jet black background, overlapped towards the bottom by a slightly lighter, vaguely glowing rectangular shape appearing from the bottom of the screen and giving the impression of a surface disappearing into the distance until its vanishing point on the horizon. In the centre of the screen are the words 'CANARIES—Jay Price' in a very large, uppercase, white serif font.
A page from the ‘Empty When Full’ website, viewed on a desktop screen, which has a light sky-blue background and black text. At the very top left of the screen is a diamond-shaped motif alongside the words 'You are here: Exhibition > VAGUS, MH Sarkis' and opposite this in the top-right corner are the words 'Information’ and 'Process'. Underneath, the main portion of the page consists of a very gentle gradient background, getting gradually lighter as it traverses from top to bottom, before it is bisected by a darker, vaguely triangular shape which appears from the bottom of the screen and gives the impression of a surface disappearing into the distance until its vanishing point on the horizon. In the centre of the screen are the words 'Vagus—MH Sarkis' in a very large, thin uppercase sans-serif font, a semi-opaque mirror image of which appears below as if reflected in a pool of water.
Our 'brands' for each of the artist's works

Artistic identities

One of the most compelling parts of the project was the opportunity to design a unique aesthetic for each of the digital rooms that would hold the work by each of the four artists involved, encompassing a typographic-led ‘logo’ for the work, an accompanying palette and additional motif design.

Visit Empty When Full
The homepage of the 'All Bound Together?' exhibition website. Text reads ‘All bound together? 02 August-29 October 2021.’ and beneath this ‘Introduction. At a moment in history in which freedom, health, and inequality are at the cultural fore, this exhibition centres the reflections of disabled and marginalised people on the interwoven pandemics that Covid-19 has induced. [The text is intersected by an audio player bar]
A page from the ‘All Bound Together’ website, viewed on a smartphone screen. At the very top left of the screen, hovering over the content, is a white circle with a red border containing a red and black map pin icon. Behind and below this is a brightly coloured portrait painting that has a large bell jar in the centre. A baby sits inside the bell jar, holding onto a chain. Behind the jar is a blue sea and starry sky covered in intricate patterns. Below the painting is the text 'Inside the Bell Jar' in a bold font, followed by 'Yvonne Mabs Francis, 2017'. Underneath this are two red icons with accompanying text reading 'About the work' and 'About the artist'. Following this is a red zigzagged line which stretches the width of the page, and below this the top of the next artwork is just about visible, although it's unclear what it depicts. At the very bottom of the page, text reads 'Room Audio Introduction', which sits alongside play, settings and volume icons and the text 0:00 / 0:36.

All Bound Together?

Exhibiting critical perspectives on community and isolation as we emerged from lockdown, All Bound Together? featured work from 23 disabled and marginalised artists.

With the brief of creating a site that felt as tactile, accessible and beyond the expected realms of a ‘website’ as possible, we created a digital space that attempts to explore rooms and walls, rather than mere pages and sections.

A desktop view of the 'All Bound Together?' exhibition website. The words ‘All bound together?’ sit above an abstract floorplan containing rooms with the following text centred within them: ‘Frayed at the edges’, ‘Apart at the seams’, ‘How long is a piece of string?’, ‘Cut from the same cloth’, ‘Fibre optics’, ‘Common threads’.
A page from the ‘All Bound Together’ website, viewed on a smartphone screen. At the very top left of the screen, hovering over the content, is a white circle with a red border containing a red and black map pin icon. Behind and below this is a red-bordered rectangular grid with two visible rows. The top row contains the text 'Fibre Optics' and the bottom row contains 'Common Threads'. Protruding from the bottom edge of the grid is a door icon, the kind of which you might see on a floorplan of a building, and spilling out from this is a wavy, zigzagged red line which curves back and forth until it disappears behind a red button with white text that reads 'Back to top' alongside an upward-facing arrow icon. At the very bottom of the page, text reads 'Room Audio Introduction', which sits alongside play, settings and volume icons and the text 0:00 / 1:26.
A page from the ‘All Bound Together’ website, viewed on a smartphone screen. At the very top left of the screen, hovering over the content, is a white circle with a red border containing a red and black map pin icon. Behind and below this is a wavy, zigzagged red line which curves back and forth until it disappears behind a red block which takes up the remainder of the image. White text upon it reads 'Back to top' alongside an upward-facing arrow icon, followed by a speech bubble motif containing the text 'Tell us what you think!'. Underneath, more text reads 'If you enjoy All Bound Together? please consider leaving your feedback in our audience survey. All feedback is used in the shaping of our future programme and helps us to continue championing disabled artists. At the very bottom of the page, text reads 'Exhibition Audio Introduction', which sits alongside play, settings and volume icons and the text 0:00 / 1:26.
A page from the ‘All Bound Together’ website, viewed on a smartphone screen. At the very top left of the screen, hovering over the content, is a white circle with a red border containing a red and black map pin icon. Behind and below this is the bottom portion of a colour photograph, which appears to depict a wooden chest of drawers, photographed from an angle and above. Another photograph follows, this one fully visible, which depicts the following: parallel to the road, lining the pavement, is a tall, corrugated sheet of metal standing on end. It fills the image. The road is just visible at the bottom of the image, with a building and trees behind the sheet metal. A small no entry sign in red and white is on the wall to the right of the metal. Below the photograph is the text 'Living through the precarity of everyday, Juan delGado, 2020'. Underneath this are two red icons with accompanying text reading 'About the work' and 'About the artist'. Following this is a red block upon which sits the words 'Where next?' in white text. At the very bottom of the page, text reads 'Room Audio Introduction', which sits alongside play, settings and volume icons and the text 0:00 / 0:36.
A page from the ‘All Bound Together’ website, viewed on a desktop screen. At the very top left of the screen is a red and black map pin icon alongside the words 'You are here: The Exhibition—Apart at the seams' and opposite this in the top-right corner are the words 'Information' and 'Catalogue'. Below is an asymmetrical grid containing three photographs, only one of which is fully visible. The left and right sides of the grid are marked by vertical red zigzagged lines which stretch the full height of the image. The topmost photo depicts an empty, gloomy corridor, lit by long ceiling lights overhead. Down both sides are multiple doorways, with two open doors at the end of the corridor. The middle photograph depicts an expanse of water that fills the image. At the top of the photo is a distorted reflection of a building in pale brick. The water is very still. The third photograph shows the corner of a room where two walls meet, and blue paint peels from the surface to show the white wall beneath. Curls of peeled paint gather in a pile on the brown floor below. At the very bottom of the page, text reads 'Room Audio Introduction', which sits alongside play, settings and volume icons, and the text '0:00 / 0:36. Paused'.

A stitch in time

Taking influence from the exhibition’s title, the logo and identity we devised utilises motifs that have their roots in textiles. Drop-shadowed buttons and frames, surrounded by a zigzag stitch motif—which interlocks and overlaps throughout the exhibition—attempt to communicate an experience which is organic, tangible and in flux.

Typographically, we required something functional, legible and accessible, and Atkinson Hyperlegible, created in partnership with the Braille Institute, was the perfect fit.

Visit All Bound Together?