Opened in September 2023 and located at the World Trade Center site in Lower Manhattan, Perelman Performing Arts Center (PAC NYC) is the cultural capstone and final piece of the rebuilding of the World Trade Center after 9/11. PAC offers a new kind of public space where people from all walks of life are invited to gather, eat, drink, and experience the transformative power of performing arts. Its modular theater spaces can be configured to accommodate an interdisciplinary program.
Aiming to create a welcoming and inclusive brand identity, PORTO ROCHA took PAC NYC’s architecture as their starting point: a cube at eye level, a square at aerial view. To mirror this in the logo, each letter was designed to a square ratio, which becomes the symbol that sits at its core with “PAC” and “NYC” set on either side. The logo stands as an icon in its own right and expands into a powerful framing device for a diverse array of content: a way for people to see themselves in the brand and a glimpse into the programming happening within its walls.
To support their communication needs and ambition for mass appeal, PORTO ROCHA designed a custom display typeface, PAC Display, that references both the form of the building and 19th Century Gothic street signage. A flexible approach to typesetting and layouts ensures that the typeface can become synonymous with the institution over time, while adapting to a wide range of interdisciplinary programming.
Other design elements like photography and color adapt to divers formats, programming and communication needs. Supporting the identity’s visual system is a brand voice, personified as ‘The People’s Host.’ The voice welcomes and challenges, energizes and educates. With a straightforward structure and no added flourishes, it stays accessible to people of all ages and languages.
