Rebrand for Reopening

CLIENT: I Am Books

THE ASK:

I Am Books is an Italian-American bookstore in Boston's North End. Covid lockdowns forced it to close. The ask: a full rebrand for the reopening logo, typography, brand guidelines, and marketing materials built by one person, on a lean freelance budget, in two weeks.

I Am Books reopened in November 2021 at a new home on 124 Salem St. more than three times the size of the original space, with ten windows facing the street. The Dante mark has carried through since: it's on the storefront, the merch, and the store's social presence.

THE CONCEPT DANTE, THE KNIGHT:

Most people know Dante Alighieri as the poet in the red cloak and laurel wreath the father of Italian language. Fewer know he was also a soldier, a politician, and a knight who fought at the Battle of Campaldino.

That's the Dante I built the mark around. The fight in him is the fight I Am Books needed to come back from lockdown and the stars in the mark are a direct nod to the last line of Dante's first canto: "...and we came out to once again see the stars."

MY ROLE:

I owned this project end to end, solo client relationship, creative concept, illustration, art direction, and every deliverable in the brand system, on a two-week timeline and a lean freelance budget.