Kearns Mancini Architects
Originally named KMAI, Kearns Mancini Architects decided to rename and rebrand after nearly 30 years of excellence in the Greater Toronto Area.
To help usher in their next chapter, Evoke Solutions was contracted to guide the firm through the rebranding process, from concepts through to execution. All existing brand materials were reviewed and efforts were made early on to homogenize and simplify the brand elements into a more manageable system. The result is a presentation that is at once steadfast and playful.
Logo
After thorough exploration, the Kearns Mancini logo evolved into a sturdy, yet svelte wordmark to emphasize the name change from KMAI to Kearns Mancini Architects. The elements are arranged to suggest efficient and intelligent design in both large and small spaces. The ARCHITECTS component adopts different colours to demonstrate the firm’s flexibility and exploration, while staying true to their core values.
Palette
Kearns Mancini’s propensity for using bright colours — always strategically and often as an element of surprise — is well known. To reflect this, while maintaining consistency across all mediums and colour spaces, the palette was narrowed down to the five colours shown.
Stationery
Predominantly white with small, punchy colour accents, the stationery set includes contrast pieces with full-bleed colour. Visual elements are arranged on both the X and Y axes to exhibit the playful, explorative aspect of their work.
Proposal Template
To facilitate more efficient proposal building, and elevate the quality of presentation, Evoke Solutions worked with Kearns Mancini to create an InDesign template system. We reviewed archived proposals from the past 30 years to assess and understand the layouts required to accommodate their needs. The resulting template is sleek, flexible and reduces overall page counts by a considerable margin.
Intranet
With a steadily growing firm, Kearns Mancini needed to update their intranet to better serve the team. The new intranet shares the aesthetic of the website and grants easier access to company resources, news, and event information.
Website
In the early stages of the redesign, the new responsive website architecture was divided into two halves — Projects and Updates. This simplification resulted in a better presentation of their portfolio of work, with full-screen photography, blueprints, renderings, and testimonials. The blog section allows the firm to efficiently update their followers on their latest successes and insights.
30th Anniversary
To help celebrate the successes of the firm’s first three decades in business, Evoke Solutions designed a logo which reflects the essence of the recent rebrand, imprints the milestone, and suggests renewed optimism for the future in a concise presentation. The logo was the graphic anchor for invitations, event signage, and a retrospective book.
30th Anniversary Retrospective
Designed as a takeaway for the event’s high-profile guests, the retrospective showcases the sheer volume and uncompromising quality of Kearns Mancini’s work from 1984 – 2014. The book features conceptual art, drawings, and photography, letting the visuals speak for themselves.
