Photo: Joshua FranzosEach issue of Carnegie reminds us of the many ways in which our museums serve as places and agents of connection. Through startling exhibitions and engrossing programs, they connect people of all ages with the wonders of science and the achievements of art; with the human capacities to discover and invent; with the world around them and the worlds beyond; with their own resources of curiosity and imagination; and with others who share the experiences our museums inspire and the questions our museums provoke.
It was with these connections in mind that, over the past year, we worked to update the Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh brand by creating a new visual identity, which I am pleased to introduce as we prepare for its public launch this spring. (Each of the four museums will also retain its individual brand.)
Bold and dynamic, this new visual identity reflects our commitment to being an outward-focused, responsive, and collaborative partner with the communities we serve. It includes a new logo whose core is an attention-getting “C,” separated into two segments to suggest the ways in which our museums bring things together that would otherwise remain apart: art and science, four distinct museums, and the many individuals and organizations we serve. You’ll note that this new “C” is reflected in the magazine’s redesigned masthead.
You will also notice the shortened name that accompanies the “C”: Carnegie Museums. After 130 years of proudly anchoring the cultural life of Pittsburgh, we no longer need to proclaim ourselves a Pittsburgh entity in our formal name.
Bold and dynamic, this new visual identity reflects our commitment to being an outward-focused, responsive, and collaborative partner with the communities we serve.
The history of our most recent brand dates back to the late 1990s, when Carnegie Museums was making a transition from “The Carnegie”—consisting of Carnegie Museums of Art and Natural History and Carnegie Library, all located on the historic Oakland campus—to a newly formed family of four museums. The visual identity we have been using since then was the outcome of that initial formation of an independent Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh, and its emphasis was, understandably, on the number of museums in the Carnegie Museums family.
Throughout our history, you—our members and donors—have served as Carnegie Museums’ most effective and enthusiastic brand ambassadors. Your belief in the outward-looking mission of today’s Carnegie Museums emboldens us, and we hope you’ll embrace our refreshed brand identity as a reflection of that belief. Thank you, as always, for your ongoing friendship and support.
Steven Knapp
President and Chief Executive Officer
Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh
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