An artist’s signature is the final touch—the personal stamp that declares that a painting is finished.

For many years, the logo of Axelle Fine Arts, a gallery focused on contemporary French painters, was based on the look of an artist’s signature. When they came to Project 13 for an update, they wanted to freshen up their look with a modern logo, yet maintain that personalized, hand-lettered feel.

We designed a clean, stylish mark that’s strong enough to make an impression, but understated enough not to interfere with the artwork when displayed in an ad or on a catalog. The mark and accompanying branding were applied across all corporate and marketing materials for their locations in New York, New Orleans, San Francisco and Boston.

The new look was so well received that Axelle now has Project 13 design all of its artist catalogs, event and exhibition promotions and advertising, plus a new website that’s coming soon. The catalogs and event promotions demonstrate the strength and flexibility of the new mark, as each piece must be consistent with the brand, but unique to the individual artist.