Exotrail is a French end-to-end space mobility provider pioneering a new era of logistics.
Graphéine worked with Exotrail on the evolution of their visual identity. We created a new logotype and redesigned the brand architecture of products and services to provide the Exotrail brand with a comprehensive graphic guidelines. The new emblem merges the power symbol and the wings of Hermes into an asymmetrical sign that suggests upwards movement. The constituent elements of the old emblem are reused in a monogram icon that now stylises the first letter of the brand name.

We created brand guidelines that include a strategic use of the colour palette. The main brand color, Propulsion Blue, is the central color of the identity. However all the colors are used sparingly to accentuate the visuals with a major presence given to black and white.

Aeonik from CoType was chosen as the official brand typeface. Its details – the tail of the Q, the horizontality of the terminals in the lowercase t, a, j and y – make it work harmoniously with the new logo and wordmark. Not only does this horizontality correspond with the design of the Exotrail wordmark, but it is also a contemporary take on the NASA worm aesthetic.

All brand elements are tied together by a modular grid system that allows the placement of images, text and brand assets. Colored strips on the edge of applications add an elegant color accent while also identifying the sub-brand of the product/service.

Just like on earth, logistics have become a crucial need in space. Space logistics operators need to provide an end-to-end solution: Software/Hardware/Services. Exotrail is on a mission to become the hub for all-round space logistics solutions. This new visual identity captures this mission as well as Exotrail’s values and vision, opening up a new chapter in its history.

See the full case study on our website.

Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris is a major higher education and research establishment and a component of the Université Paris Cité. A world-renowned geosciences research organisation, the “IPGP” studies the Earth and planets from the core to the most superficial fluid layers. It brings together around 500 people: researchers recruited from all over the world, engineers, technicians, administrative staff, post-doctoral and doctoral students from all countries who share the same passion for the Earth, planetary and environmental sciences.

For the 100th anniversary of its creation, IPGP wanted to redesign its logo and more generally its visual identity. The previous logo was 30 years old and the objective was to make it more legible, more visible and timeless to gain credibility.

Graphéine worked with IPGP in the creation of its new visual identity and the implementation of its graphic guidelines. The new logotype modernizes the previous identity by giving it more impact and flexibility, while respecting the DNA that has built its reputation. This work of coherence has been pushed to the point of harmonising the logos of its volcanological and seismological observatories.

In addition to a new logotype, the IPGP's visual identity has a brand new universe. This is embodied by graphic codes combining chromatic ranges and typographic styles designed to create unique information environments that signal, communicate boldly and energetically IPGP.

Garnett becomes the primary typeface of the IPGP graphic guidelines. It is a robust contemporary grotesk designed by Connor Davenport and distributed by Sharp Type. It has the affable personality of 19th century metal type. Garnett’s role is to draw attention to the most important messages communicated by IPGP and it is therefore used carefully and sparingly for headlines and short texts. The type family chosen for text is Suisse Int’l, a simple and effective sans serif from Swiss Typefaces, designed by Ian Party.

With this new visual identity, the IPGP is now more visible and more timeless; it gains credibility. From now on, its visual identity associated with that of its peers truly reflects the innovative character of the institution. Its communication deploys a flexible and recognizable graphic language for a better identification on the international scene.

Find more images and information on the Graphéine website.

In January 2022, five institutions located in Lille joined forces to create one of the largest European universities: Université de Lille – a university at the heart of global transitions, a major force in higher education. With more than 80,000 students, Université de Lille aims to develop new ways of reinventing progress, creating new training courses and innovating through research, while developing its links with the metropolitan, regional and international ecosystem.

Université de Lille is a new “EPE” (experimental public institution), now including the students of the former Université de Lille, Lille School of Journalism (ESJ Lille), Lille National School of Architecture and Landscape (ENSAPL), National School of Textile Arts and Industries (ENSAIT) and Sciences Po Lille. Université de Lille is the university of social, economic and environmental transition. It’s a project that brings the completeness of French knowledge to the doors of Northern Europe.

Graphéine accompanied Université de Lille in the definition of its visual identity, its brand architecture and its graphic guidelines in a co-construction process. Several workshops were conducted between June and July 2021. These co-creative workshops led the participants to question the values of the project, the symbolic vision of the university and the image of Lille territory.

Three L’s for Lille form the U of University. Their interlocking shape evokes the leaves of an open book, symbolizing the mission of higher education to transmit knowledge. We can also see the furrows of the mining industry, those of agricultural crops and the lines of the looms of Lille's economic past. The curved emblem speaks to us of the warm hospitality of Northern France. Finally, a mark is emerging, one that marks the future and initiates the signature “Let's inspire tomorrow”.

Two typefaces are used within the layout. Rational by René Bieder and Eliza by Camelot Typefaces. Their association transcribes the perfect agreement between French tradition and European modernity. This duo gives relief to the titles and its italic directly echoes the emblem.

This new unifying identity, gives birth to a new version of the University of Lille and translates its openness, interdisciplinarity and excellence. A joyful and flexible identity to which students, staff, researchers and teachers are already united!

Learn more on our portfolio website.

Before (left) and after the redesign (right)

Les Franciscaines de Deauville is a hybrid, open-ended cultural space that houses a museum, an auditorium, a collection of André Hambourg's artworks, thematic photographic exhibitions, and a reading and documentation space. Founded as a place for meeting and sharing, Les Franciscaines is a significant cultural and urban living project taken on by the city of Deauville in the heart of Normandy, France.

Graphéine worked with Deauville to create the visual identity of this unique place. The architecture of the building is remarkable: it is a former convent of the Franciscan Sisters dating from the 19th century, rehabilitated for the occasion by the architectural firm Moatti-Rivière. The space is open, its different universes communicate with each other while offering an intimate setting.

From a bird’s eye view of the project, we discovered the building’s F shape. This made the choice of the monogram an instant realization, both for its evocative force and its effectiveness in communicating a new offer in the daily life of Deauville’s inhabitants. Its style is also a nod to the ‘retro-chic’ stripes of beach umbrellas and swimsuits. The design of the Les Franciscaines wordmark was inspired by the Art Deco style, and adapted for the stencil treatment required for the signage. The openings in the letters A and R create a visual connection to the open style of the monogram.

Verlag and Cera Stencil were selected as the accompanying typefaces. Verlag is a direct extension of the architectural style used in the brand’s logotype. Its style echoes the Bauhaus in a less geometric, more refined way. Cera Stencil was originally chosen for the stencil signage application. It functions well with Verlag and is also used in publications to create hierarchy in drop caps and pull quotes.

With a constant intention to think of Les Franciscaines as a place of life for everyone, we designed a warm and intimate signage as well as a naming system for the different spaces: the Refectory, the Auditorium, the Exhibition Courtyard, the Equestrian Universe, the Art of Living Universe, etc... These titles are incorporated vertically in the spaces to attract the attention of visitors. They are accompanied by a gallery of pictograms (a horse, a parasol, a camera and more) that refer to major themes of the city. These custom pictograms maintain a fluid stencil style.

Read more about the editorial guidelines on our portfolio website (in French).
See also a post about the accompanying signage.

Les Franciscaines de Deauville is a hybrid, open-ended cultural space that houses a museum, an auditorium, a collection of André Hambourg's artworks, thematic photographic exhibitions, and a reading and documentation space. Founded as a place for meeting and sharing, Les Franciscaines is a significant cultural and urban living project taken on by the city of Deauville in the heart of Normandy, France.

Verlag and Cera Stencil were selected as the accompanying typefaces. Verlag is a direct extension of the architectural style used in the brand’s logotype. Its style echoes the Bauhaus in a less geometric, more refined way. Cera Stencil was originally chosen for the stencil signage application. It functions well with Verlag and is also used in publications to create hierarchy in drop caps and pull quotes.

See also a post about the editorial guidelines of this identity.

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This article presents two editorial projects designed by Graphéine for the Théâtre Musical de Paris Châtelet: the Tchât newspaper and a brochure published on the occasion of the theater’s reopening in 2019.

A popular newspaper that twists and Tchâts

The Châtelet theater’s ambition is to give access culture to everyone, and to express this goal, it was decided to create a newspaper to replace the traditional and boring programme leaflet. It needed to express all the life, audacity and curiosity of the new season designed by Ruth Mackenzie & Thomas Lauriot dit Prévost, and keeping it popular. In collaboration with the editorial team at Châtelet, we set up a trimonthly newsletter which we have named Tchât, a diminutive of the theater’s name and a nod to the desire for dialogue with cultural audiences. This newsletter communicates the schedule and the line-up of events, in addition to the regular brochure, but in a quirkier manner.

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We thought the dancing expressivity of a variable font could be smart to embody this mindset. Obviously by James Edmondson (OH no Type Co., 2018) was a perfect fit for this editorial project: It allows to designed catchy big headlines with all the versality require for cultural content. It’s paired wih Americana (ATF, 1966) for headlines. Text is set in LL Akkurat (Lineto, 2004), the theater’s identity typeface, and Untitled Serif (Klim Type Foundry, 2017).

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Graphéine. License: All Rights Reserved.

A unique brochure to announce the Châtelet’s reopening

In 2019, the Théâtre Musical de Paris Châtelet reopened its doors after two years of renovation and outdoor events. For announcing the reopening and the theater’s message of accessibility, we created a short-run publication that showcases the management’s vision of inclusion and sharing. The typefaces chosen for this publication are Nantes (Luzi Type) and Fino Sans (TypeTogether), both released in 2016.

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Graphéine. License: All Rights Reserved.

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Graphéine. License: All Rights Reserved.

See also the article about the visual identity system for the Théâtre Musical de Paris Châtelet.

Graphéine. License: All Rights Reserved.

In 2019, Théâtre Musical de Paris Châtelet reopened its doors after two years of renovation and outdoor events. For the theater, this meant a curtain raiser that marks a new phase with a new managing team.

The primary aim was to create coherence in the identity of the theater and to enhance its visibility. And thus, to develop the popularity of the Châtelet brand.

The challenge also included the creation of an extendable brand identity system, given that the previous identity left little room for modification for the internal teams. The goal was to make it a theater for all Parisians, whether old or new to the theater scene.

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Graphéine. License: All Rights Reserved.

The original logotype of Châtelet was designed 12 years ago by Philippe Apeloig. Over the years, it has acquired a symbolic status in the cultural landscape. Retaining this logotype in the new brand identity was non-negotiable. Being split in three lines, the word “Châ-te-let” is simultaneously read as a sound and an image. Due to its peculiar typographic composition, the hyphens of the logotype hint at the connections between the arts, music, perspectives and cultures.

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Graphéine. License: All Rights Reserved.

Graphéine. License: All Rights Reserved.

Graphéine. License: All Rights Reserved.

The Châtelet theater intended to establish its presence in the digital era. The previous identity was primarily suited for posters and printed communications. This strong technological constraint directed our design decisions, leading to simple and efficient visual solutions. Optimisation inspired the simplified version of the new logo. It revamps the previous one while retaining all its rhythmic and sonic concept.

The ubiquity of the theater allows the logotype to be separated from its tagline without affecting its recognizability. This modification also resolves online display constraints, thus creating a logo that is legible at all sizes. We added responsiveness to the identity, allowing for applications in motion design, social media and various other content platforms in the most cohesive manner possible in the theater’s communication.

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Spotlight on a logo that speaks

With the first campaign, we kept the LL Akkurat typeface designed by Laurenz Brunner for Lineto in 2004 and capitalized on the spelling of “Châ-te-let” to create puns and witty catchphrases that capture the viewer’s imagination and celebrate the newly renovated theater.

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Graphéine was proud to partner with the Théâtre Musical de Paris and to collaborate with its teams as we took up the challenge of getting the theater back with a bang.

Learn more about this project on our portfolio website, in French or English. See also the article about two editorial projects for the theater.

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Graphéine. License: All Rights Reserved.

The 8th arrondissement of Paris is one of the most prestigious districts of the French capital. It has many of the world's most famous historical monuments (Arc de Triomphe, Avenue des Champs Élysées, etc.), which also makes it a very popular tourist area.

The artistic direction of the magazine for the 8th arrondissement of Paris draws its aesthetic from the minimalist and elegant graphics of the new logo for its town hall: a perfect geometric 8, cut open at the lower left and upper right.

To create the graphic charter of the magazine, our first typographic choice was the typeface Wigrum designed by Feed in 2011 and available from the French foundry Production Type. Used in all-lowercase letters for article headings, this sans serif typeface has a very distinctive lowercase g in a quasi 8-shape. This unusual shape creates a strong connection by extending the graphic design of the borough’s logo.

The more classical look of Tiempos, designed in 2010 by Kris Sowersby of the Klim Type Foundry, contrasts with the modernist purity of Wigrum and completes the typographic set of the magazine. This typeface offers a contemporary alternative to the traditional Times New Roman, and provides a heritage touch to the magazine, while ensuring a great reading comfort for the composition of the running text of the articles.

The magazine of the 8th arrondissement town hall has been designed in harmony with its new logo. The design of its library of pictograms also had to remain consistent with this style to create a singular and bold visual identity.

The layout of the magazine is based on a flexible grid in order to carry out all the sections; from interviews with personalities who are ambassadors of the 8th arrondissement to practical information for the daily life of its inhabitants. Full-page photography, monumental lettering and rhythmic composition; the magazine's artistic direction is inspired by the graphic codes of the great fashion and culture magazines to create an experience that is resolutely a “lifestyle” summary of the best the 8th arrondissement has to offer.

Les Champs Libres is a cultural institution situated in the Rennes métropole. It brings together three entities under the same roof – the library, the Museum of Brittany, and the Espace des Sciences. The project born in 1992 had initially chosen the name “Les Champs Libres” to evoke a source of life, a nourishing space without borders, owned by everyone, in keeping with the cultural lineup.

Graphéine accompanied this institution in the conception of a common visual identity, linking its three constituent entities.

A brand new monogram for Les Champs Libres: The interlaCing. In painting and sculpture, interlacing is an ornament that evokes entangled cords without ends, and is usually symmetrical. Constructed with a single line, the interlaced emblem symbolizes different paths that intersect and meet at a point like an agora. Its construction also brings flexibility and a human touch that contrasts with the architecture. A simple and original symbol with great signage strength.

Previously, the Les Champs Libres logotype was composed using the typeface FF Minimum in its Bing version, designed by Pierre di Sciullo in 2004 (the original Minimum dating back to 1986). His drawing is inspired by the grids formed by the pixels of the first personal computers. The result is a highly technological-looking typeface, with a strong 1990s style. A typeface that reinforced a rigid, inflexible image, ignoring the human aspect, which remains at the heart of the institution.

The new wordmark uses Raisonné, designed by Benjamin Critton in 2010 and available from Colophon foundry. It has these geometric and playful qualities whick make a strong connection with the interlaCing monogram.

We selected two typefaces to create a singular and cohesive identity system through all media supports. The primary typeface is Oldschool Grotesk by William Montrose (Kilotype, 2019) and it is used to set big headlines and graphic assets with the interlaCing emblem. The secondary typeface is Calibre by Kris Sowersby (Klim Type Foundry 2012). Calibre is a contemporary neo-grotesk sans serif, which make a good fit when used for body texts.

The new visual identity takes up the challenge of bringing together its entire cultural offering under a single identity. The message has been made more readable and in line with the values of the place which has a strong social and human commitment.
A cultural link!

Learn more about this project on our website, in English or in French.

Léonie Paris is an astonishing journey that combines traditional Indian pastries and French know-how. Graphéine accompanied Léonie in the creation of the brand's stortytelling and visual identity.

The night sky is the backdrop of Léonie’s story. The stars are a strong symbolic element in the visual identity of Léonie Paris, and create the link between the story of this festive night and Léonie herself. The wordmark of the Léonie logo is in the Didone style, conveying French elegance and know-how. Its proportions are enlarged to give more presence to the name.

The É combines a half moon in its counterform and a star in its crossbar. This trick subtly underlines the typographic finesse and brings a touch of originality. The star in the É has been deliberately drawn with angles and not curves so that it stands out in the logo and creates 2 types of stars that punctuate the brand pattern.

The accompanying typeface is Berthe (Abyme, 2018). It is a revival of the Série n°16 des caractères ordinaires produced and distributed in 1887 by Deberny & Cie. Although it is based on the Didone style, its serifs are even finer and its junctions with the stems are softer for a premium look.

As an accompaniment, Feliciano Type’s Marcin Antique (2017) has more character than typical Neo-Grotesques, which makes it an ideal match. Grotesques essentially being Didone typefaces whose contrast and serifs have been removed, these two typefaces share the same skeleton while having different contrasts.

Learn more about this project on our portfolio page, in English or French.

The Université de Paris is a new public university, created in March 2019 from a merger of the Paris Descartes University, Paris Diderot and L'Institute Physique du Globe de Paris. The University of Paris chose Graphéine to define its brand image and its graphic charter in a co-construction process. The opportunity to collegially exchange qualities made it possible to define a relevant visual identity.

The logo echoes the Didone style typefaces that were massively used in France from 1810 to the 1950s for regulatory printed matter and school textbooks. By combining the letter U and a stylized representation of the Eiffel Tower, we created a symbol that gives the impression that it has always existed. Wearing the emblem of the University of Paris should be seen as a reward, like the Varsity Letter awarded in the United States.

The strong contrast of Darby Sans offers a form of beauty and refinement that is traditionally associated with luxury and elegant letters with Didone-style serifs. Its structural qualities and humanistic style perfectly complement the “heritage” aspect of the emblem, while adding a contemporary touch.

Learn more about this project:
[FR] https://www.grapheine.com/portfolio/identite-visuelle-universite-de-paris
[EN] https://www.grapheine.com/en/portfolio/brand-design-universite-de-paris