<http://www.artsunited.org> , as it was renamed twenty years ago, is one of
the oldest non-profit art funds in the United States, located in Fort Wayne,
Indiana. Its mission is "to provide support to arts and cultural
organizations and to unite and coordinate arts efforts in northeast
Indiana." Arts United also manages the Arts United Center, built in 1973 by
Louis Kahn
<http://www.flickr.com/photos/gravitymachine/sets/72157623587507578/> and
serves as the main performing space for the Civic Theatre, the Youtheatre,
Fort Wayne Ballet, Fort Wayne Dance Collective and the Fort Wayne
Philharmonic. This month, Arts United introduced a new logo designed by
local Fort Wayne agency One Lucky Guitar <http://oneluckyguitar.com> .
"You might say we're getting out of the box and moving in a new direction.
Wewant our logo to demonstrate the collaborative nature of our mission to
enrich the community by making arts and culture a vital part of our
lifestyle. We're excited about our new look."
As corny as it sounds to say that the new logo gets out of the box, it
indeed does so literally as well as attitudinally. The old logo was very
serious and artsy, with that Avatar-meets-Roman-inscription lettering in the
1980s blue box motif. The new one breaks away nicely from those limited
constraints and creates a lively shape that speaks to collaboration and
integration. The monogram is simple, easy to read, and has a very nice
dimensionality that does not rely on shading to convey its volume. The
loosely spaced Neutraface type gives it a little mid-century artistic flavor
that contrasts well with the rounded monogram above. The logo works very
well too in inverse, as the business cards above show and it's also
surprising how good it looks against the bright orange background in the
image below. Overall, a very strong and fresh update.
