Statue of Liberty Museum, New York, NY

Experiential Graphic Designer, ESI Design

I had the honor of being the graphic designer to tell the story of Lady Liberty visually, from large-scale environmental graphics to informative railings to a brand for the museum. Working closely with physical, content, media, and system designers, we designed a museum that brings the history of the Statue to life and invites visitors to be part of it.

The story of the Statue through time is told using shifts in materials and color inherent to the Statue as she matures. The palette is built from colors of the statue: gold for the flame, rich oranges for the unoxidized copper, green for the patina copper, and dark brown for the iron bars on her interior. The physical forms of Liberty’s robes inform the curving shapes of the walls, while the materials for the graphics and finishes on the walls reflect the progression of the Statue’s construction, from plaster model to wooden frames to a completed copper figure.

Given her massive scale and fame, we strove to bring her to a more personal, approachable level to enable visitors to connect with her. In the entrance hall, the visitor is greeted by a photo of the statue’s face at actual size. This gives visitors appreciation for her size, while bringing them eye to eye with her. Further into the museum, full-scale copper models of the face and foot are on display for visitors to touch, giving them a sense of material and scale.

Immersive environments filled with graphics and artifacts tell the history of the Statue’s construction, acceptance, and development as a world icon. Filled with personal accounts, they encourage the visitor to make an even deeper connection with the people behind the Statue and to become a part of her rich, ever-evolving history.

https://esidesign.com/ladies-of-liberty-laura-gunther-associate-director-experiential-graphic-design-at-esi-design/