Shaping the products of tomorrow.

The beginning

Grayscale Design Studio was no stranger to designing custom furniture, lighting and planters to make the spaces they developed truly special. When the team acquired a 3d clay printer, their creativity was unlocked in unexpected ways. Days became late nights experimenting with printed patterns that created unique and mesmerizing textures. Thinner, light-colored clay allowed for a warm glow in pendant lights, while dishwasher safe clays stayed food safe and waterproof. The team quickly realized the creative potential in their hands, and soon thereafter, Pentograph was born. Although they'd be launching with many ceramic pieces, the brand would need to be flexible enough to adapt to the wide world of intentional product design.

Client collaboration

As a designers and architects, Jennifer Thuma & Phirak Suon had a clear vision of what they wanted for the identity, but needed refinement and extension to make the brand of their dreams. They came bearing early explorations of the general direction, and we discussed ways to incorporate the idea behind the new name: Pentograph. For them, every project begins with a quick pen sketch, then balanced, weighted and refined through geometric graphs. While many of the early explorations were simple and modern, it was important to highlight the messy create phase, too. Together, we selected the top three directions to explore and refine. Each initial logo was put through the wringer, stress testing horizontal, vertical, diagonal variants along with housing within container shapes. Every concept then explored shape languages and secondary graphic applications to find just the right balance for the final look.

Ultimately, we took the best from each concept to create a full identity system that will work for anything the team can dream up. The new system uses pattern heavy areas (like tissue paper) to highlight the beginning of the process, while product manuals and packaging remained simple and universal. This created a cost-effective and flexible system that can be used for years to come.

Pentograph.com