I was lucky enough to help create a unique brand experience for an exciting café in Facebook’s newest headquarters in Gramercy Park, NYC. The architectural project was led by Frank Gehry and involved renovating a historic building in one of the most beautiful parts of New York City. I was stoked to get started.

Inspiration + Direction

The design approach came from the idea that we wanted FB&J to feel like a reprieve from the “always-on” attitude so closely associated with working at one of the largest tech companies in the world. I wanted to create a space that felt special and prompted customers to forgo work for an hour and connect with each other. I pulled inspiration from taverns as social gathering places and mixed in the exclusivity of the shared experience of being Facebook employees, which combined to give us the speakeasy as a key design inspiration.

A Rich History

The building at 225 Park Ave S was originally built as the headquarters for the American Woolen Company in 1912, which was one of the largest textile manufacturers in the world at the time. The rich history of textile manufacturing in New York City, and its connection to the workers’ rights movement, gave us plenty to fold into the developing brand story.

Design Approach

With such a rich brand story, my biggest challenge was avoiding what would have been comfortable territory for Facebook: a nice, clean, minimal aesthetic. I pulled inspiration from ghost signs of generations past, the dark, mysterious atmosphere of a speakeasy, the in-your-face attitude of the labor movement in the early 1900s, and imagery associated with wool and textile production to develop a compelling, richly layered brand that leaves viewers with more questions than answers, and wanting more.

This hand-drawn illustration style blends with a moody, rich color palette and an eclectic mix of typefaces to create a unique visual identity system, complete with an extensive suite of logos that retains brand consistency while being as fun as possible.

This hand drawn illustration style blends with a moody and rich color pallete and an eclectic blend of typefaces to create a unique visual identity system, complete with in an extensive suite of logos that retains brand consitency while being as fun as possible.