This is the identity design for the 'Storefront Gala 2026,' a collaboration between Storefront and Pentagram. Natasha Jen and her team at Pentagram were responsible for the design. The event took place on September 28 at the Oyster Bar in Grand Central, New York. It honored artist Mel Chin, art world leader Deanna Hagag, and the architectural firm SO\u2013IL, and was organized to support Storefront\u2019s exhibitions and public programs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The starting point of the design was the event venue's logo. The Oyster Bar logo, designed by Rudolf de Halal, features closely spaced letters with various colors filled within thick black outlines. Pentagram explored what it would look like if alphabets not present in the logo were created using the same rules. Based on the letter forms of the existing logo, they developed an event-specific typeface featuring both letters and numbers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The typeface consists of wide strokes, truncated corners, and angular interior spaces. In particular, the letter 'O' features a diamond-shaped opening within an octagon, serving as the standard for designing the other letters. Blue, green, yellow, orange, red, and purple were applied to the characters in alternating patterns. The phrase 'Storefront Gala 2026' was arranged in densely stacked lines or in a staircase-like pattern. Some numbers were rotated, and the black outlines of the letters were configured to meet each other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This typeface serves as the central image of the identity, replacing a separate illustration. Event details are organized using a small sans-serif typeface. The design was applied to digital guides, posters, foldable programs, event screens, and embroidered hats. Variations were created by placing colorful text on a white background or filling the entire background with a single strong color. Pentagram has been collaborating with Storefront on the design of fundraising events, exhibitions, and publications since 2012.<\/p>\n\n\n\n