Brand Applications
Taking the EcoTarium Onto the Street
01 / The Challenge
The Challenge
The EcoTarium’s mix of science, nature, animals, and hands-on discovery gave the design plenty to work with. A 30-foot Gillig city bus, however, introduced a very different problem. The piece would rarely be viewed straight on or while standing still.
It needed to be recognizable in traffic, hold together from several angles, and give people a sense of the museum without relying on paragraphs of explanation.
02 / The Shift
The Shift We Made
We stopped thinking of the side of the vehicle as a giant rectangular ad. The bus itself became the composition, with color and imagery moving around its physical features so different parts of the design revealed themselves depending on where someone encountered it.
03 / The Work
How We Did It
- Designed streetside, curbside, front, and rear views as parts of a single visual system
- Used large imagery and bright color that could survive distance and motion
- Worked around doors, windows, wheel wells, safety markings, and irregular vehicle geometry
- Kept the EcoTarium identity and web address prominent across the main viewing angles
- Reviewed the composition as an actual moving object rather than simply flat production art
04 / What Happened Next
What Happened Next
05 / Why It Mattered
Why It Mattered
The bus gave the EcoTarium a presence well beyond the museum grounds. It carried some of the institution’s color and curiosity into everyday Worcester traffic, where thousands of people could encounter it without planning a museum visit.