Metromoheim Museum
Framing the Future: Designing Visual Narratives
Project Type: Digital & Editorial Design (Visual Storytelling + Brand Communication)
Project overview
Metromoheim Museum is a fictional art and culture institution seeking to elevate its seasonal exhibits through cohesive promotional materials. The goal was to unify catalogs, newsletters, greeting cards, and magazine pieces under a consistent, expressive visual identity that resonates with modern art audiences.
Role: Sole Graphic & Layout Designer
Deliverables: Digital Catalog, Magazine Article, Newsletter, New Year's Greeting Card
Tools: InDesign, Photoshop
Industry: Arts & Culture
Duration: 10/28/2024 – 12/16/2024
Objectives
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Create a visual identity system that harmonizes across print and digital formats
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Design a seasonal catalog, newsletter, magazine article, and greeting card with a unified look
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Make the materials clear and navigable, but also emotionally engaging and artful
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Ensure production-ready output (print specs, bleed, color modes) and web-optimized assets
Design approach
Guided by Expressive Storytelling
I embraced a narrative-driven, art-forward aesthetic that could reflect the mood of museum exhibits. The visual language is built around poetic imagery, elegant typography, and a color palette drawn from expressive artwork (specifically, the “Peekaboo Violet” photograph). The approach balances sophistication and accessibility, making each piece feel curated and intentional while still clear and usable.
Process work
Visual design development
The color palette was inspired entirely by the enchanting Peekaboo Violet photograph. The soft yet vibrant purples from the flowers set the tone, radiating confidence and intrigue. Gentle greens from the background foliage were brought in to add balance and a natural warmth, while the soft highlights of the subject’s skin tones lent a touch of brightness and humanity to the palette. Each hue was carefully selected to capture the dreamy, elegant atmosphere of the photograph, transforming its visual essence into a cohesive and harmonious design.
Typography
The typography choice was all about bringing the artwork’s story to life! I paired a bold, elegant serif font, Essonnes, for headings with a clean, approachable sans serif, Josefin Sans, for body text. Essonnes adds a touch of sophistication, perfectly echoing the timeless beauty of the art, while Josefin Sans keeps things modern and easy to read. Together, they create a harmonious balance—classic yet fresh—inviting readers to explore the content with both curiosity and comfort.
Challenges & solutions
Challenge: Maintaining visual cohesion across different formats (catalog vs. newsletter vs. greeting card).
Solution: Unified all pieces through a shared color palette, typography pairing, and grid logic, while giving the greeting card a more seasonal, celebratory vibe that still felt connected to the overall brand system.
Challenge: Adapting designs for both print and digital use cases (e.g., high resolution, bleed, web optimization).
Solution: Carefully scoped layouts for print specifications including bleed, margins, and CMYK setup to ensure high-quality output across mediums.
Challenge: Evoking emotion without overpowering usability.
Solution: Introduced expressive colors and poetic typography while maintaining a clear grid structure, consistent margins, and visual hierarchy so the content remained accessible and easy to consume.
Deliverables
Catalog
I developed multi-page grid structures for a detailed collection catalog, featuring key sections such as a cover, table of contents, artist introductions, and artwork showcases. The carefully structured grids ensured clarity, balance, and user-friendly navigation throughout the publication. This design emphasizes the strategic use of grids, visual hierarchy, and responsive design principles to create visually compelling and user-centered materials that guide readers seamlessly through the content.
Magazine article
Designed a two-page layout using grid systems to organize images and copy provided by the museum. The grids ensured a balanced and professional composition, with clear labeling for margins, columns, and flowlines.
Newsletter
Repurposed content into a visually engaging 2–3 page newsletter, utilizing typography and composition techniques to establish visual hierarchy and balance. Edited images in Photoshop for web optimization.
New Year’s greeting card
Designed a card featuring a vibrant layout, an inspiring quote by Pablo Picasso, and a curated list of featured artists and collections. The card incorporated precise print-ready details, including CMYK color mode, 0.125-inch bleed settings, and high-resolution imagery to ensure a polished and professional final product. This design highlights attention to detail, print production expertise, and a user-centered approach to creating visually engaging and meaningful communications.
Outcome & reflection
The visual identity came together as an elegant, expressive, and unified voice. The project demonstrates my ability to deliver polished, cohesive collateral for a cultural institution. Through this work, I sharpened my capabilities in layout design, visual consistency, and balancing artistic expression with usability.
Final thoughts
This project reinforced how thoughtful visual systems can bridge art and communication — proving that layout design is storytelling in its own right. By grounding each piece in emotional cues like color, typography, and spacing, the museum materials feel intentional and resonant.
If I were to take this further, I’d explore interactive digital catalogs, motion-based exhibit storytelling, or augmented reality overlays to truly bring the museum experience to life.
Disclaimer
Metromoheim Museum is a fictional art museum, envisioned by the creative minds at Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) as part of the GRA-350 Layout & Publication Design course. Designed solely for educational purposes, any resemblance to real businesses is purely coincidental. The exhibits and offerings are entirely imaginary—think of it as a vibrant canvas of creativity 🎨🏛️.