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Client
Personal Project
Co-Created with BTR Design
Where?
Florida, USA
What we did?
Conceptualization Strategy
Direction
Creation
Production
Brand Voice
Brand Identity
Audiovisuals
Sonic Brand
Industry
Design
Architecture
Business
Event
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When we say we offer a 360-degree experience, we truly mean it!
In 2022, ÁRBOL co-created DESIGN SUBTROPIC in partnership with BTR DESIGN. Our Branding, Design, Strategy & Communication, Audiovisuals, and Production departments, along with our Creative Directors, worked together to create an entire experience in a “post-pandemic” world.
Thanks to our generous sponsors, including Google, Wethos, Miami Design District, Perrier, and others, our Miami and Barcelona teams collaborated to bring South Florida’s first design festival to life, named Design Subtropic.
Location, location, location! The first edition of Design Subtropic took place in Miami, and the city’s identity and personality served as the main conceptual element for the selection and creation of the graphic identity system.
We wanted to celebrate Miami and its community by taking the design community on a visual journey that accentuated the city’s unique qualities. Our graphic system highlighted Miami’s distinctiveness and peculiarities, creating a design that was both innovative and reflective of the city’s character.
This initiative was born from a dream to transform South Florida into a place where design is not only appreciated, but where there is also a real sense of belonging. Our goal is to create a space that brings together people, tools, and experiences that contribute to the development of the local design industry, where professional ethics, responsibility, and community are highly valued.
We believe in promoting collaboration and co-creation of ideas to celebrate design as a transformative tool in the community. Our aim is to create a platform that supports and nurtures designers, fostering an environment where creativity can thrive, and where design can have a positive impact on society.
We designed every aspect of DESIGN SUBTROPIC! From the initial creation ideas and relationship building with sponsors, to the curation of top-notch speakers and the hosting experience.
We were honored to feature speakers from some of the most prestigious studios and companies around the world, including Pentagram, The Futur, Miami Design District, Google, and Perkins & Will, among others.
In today’s fast-paced world, brands need to be adaptable and functional. Rather than creating a traditional identity, we co-created a visual system that offers the design team the flexibility to maintain visual consistency while also injecting a dose of freshness across a wide range of mediums, from social media content to print materials.
Our approach is unique, bold, and fresh. As a cohesive team, we enjoy creating a branded universe with flexible design elements that exalt the authentic concept of each event.
Design Subtropic has a fresh brand voice that connects with designers of multiple disciplines and interests in a city where the need to unite as a community is crucial yet uncommon.
Our voice is one that seeks to raise awareness and inspire action. We aim to ignite the passion that resides in every true designer and motivate them to become agents of change. By encouraging designers to look beyond themselves and connect as a community, we empower the creative industry of Miami and contribute to its growth.
We designed a visual system that is easy to expand and work with, providing our design team with efficiency, creative freedom, and clear rules and boundaries.
To create a common language for Design Subtropic, we deconstructed the symbol into graphic elements, which we used to create unique illustration tiles.
Our main objective was to highlight the peculiarities of South Florida, including its fauna, flora, architectural heritage, and beach life.
Using black and white was important to us, but we also understood the allure of color. As designers, we recognized the importance of infusing FUN into the festival and pushing our limits to create a unique and energetic experience for our attendees.
We expanded our color system to include two main colors in the monochromatic spectrum: flamingo hot pink and Miami mint. To maintain consistency and elevate the festival’s aesthetic, we established a rule that only one color in its monochromatic variation could be used for each design piece. This meant that we couldn’t mix pink and green on the same piece.
By adhering to this rule, we were able to maintain a cohesive look and feel throughout the festival.
Its imperative to make actions previous to the event to unite the community, to spread the word and be on the Top of Heart of all potential attendants.
IN DESIGN WE TRUST and CAFECITO MONDAYS were two Instagram Lives series we strategized to start making people relate to Design Subtropic brand.
Artists, Designers, Speakers and Creatives all over the world with a different range on influence where invited to chat with different team members of Design Subtropic. A relax chat shared with our community to connect with the heart of creativity from a human side.
The response was amazing. People were excited about the event, the energy was palpable and we knew we were creating something that would make a difference in the design community.
The first edition of Design Subtropic was a success. We created a space where designers from all disciplines and backgrounds could come together and share their ideas, passion and creativity. We were able to build a community of like-minded individuals who believe that design can make a difference in the world. And we’re excited to see where this community will go next.
Thank you for joining us on this journey. We hope to see you at the next Design Subtropic event!
We had Media Coverage in:
Miami.com, Social Miami, Sun Sentinel, Soul of Miami, Events Near Here, Miami New Times, Miami center for Architecture and Design.
ÁRBOL collaborators:
Marcela Maida Pica – Production Team
José Miguel de Robertis – Sonic Brand