Queen’s Court Residential College Visual Identity

The aim of this project was to create a brand identity for Queen’s Court Residential College, the oldest residence hall at Fordham University’s Rose Hill campus. Creating an identity for a Fordham University residence hall was an ambitious undertaking that has not been attempted before. My goal was to draw upon the rich history of QC, the elegant architectural design of the building, and the memorable landscape of the Rose Hill campus in order to create a cohesive, memorable, and recognizable visual identity.

After pitching the brand identity to the Resident Director of Queen’s Court Residential College, my work is now used as the official visual identity of this historic institution.

No residence hall at Fordham had pioneered a visual identity before, and the unique and tight-knight community of Queen’s Court was perfectly suited to be the first to do so. The identity is separate from, yet complementary to, the visual identity of the University. It facilitates community building, and it is celebratory of QC’s continued legacy. I looked to transform the sparse, inconsistent, and ineffective design throughout the building into something with which residents can resonate, enjoy, and take pride in, while still staying true to the history and roots of the building.

The front of an informational brochure for prospective students. Original photography is overlayed by purple, yellow, and white accents similar to the crown of the "Q" of the logo and wordmark.
The interior of an informational brochure for prospective students. With accents similar to the front cover, the brochure's text is original and advertises Queen's Court as a holistic community with an emphasis on developing well-rounded students.

Design Process

This identity was developed over the course of two months. It was influenced by research into other branding campaigns in higher education, like Pentagram’s designs for MIT Media Lab, as well as the identities of secondary schools, like Shanghai American School’s comprehensive and malleable visual identity.

After numerous trials, three versions of the logo were refined and compared. The first simplifies the crown found on top of the Virgin Mary statue found in the QC courtyard. I found this approach too exclusive, and wanted a more secular and inclusive identity for the building.

In the second iteration, the iconic Queen’s Court towers are elegantly simplified to create a sleek and clean logo. This approach lacked personality, and felt like too obvious of a solution to creating a visual identity for the building.

Straying away from a more graphic logo oriented approach, this third approach incorporates the crown into the text. Zuzana Licko’s typeface Filosofia provides a simple yet classy canvas for a splash of QC character. I chose this iteration to continue with, but I was not satisfied by the tail of the “Q." So, I modified it myself in Adobe Illustrator.

The first iteration of the QC logo features a plain purple word-mark accompanied by a yellow illustrated crown.
The second iteration of the QC logo also has a plain purple word-mark, this time with a purple illustration of one of the three-pronged towers the sit on the roof of the gothic-style building.
This iteration of the QC logo combines logo and word-mark. It has three star-like icons above the Q in "Queen's." The words are almost all purple, except for the accent on the "Q", which is yellow.
The original tail of the Q in Filosofia, which extended downward vertically.

The original tail of the Q in Filosofia, which extended downward vertically.

Modified tail of the Q, which extends more horizontally, giving an elegant calligraphic look.

Modified tail of the Q, which extends more horizontally, giving an elegant calligraphic look.

Typeface and Color

Zuzana Licko’s Filosofia puts a modern spin on the historical Bodoni, similar to our branding objective for QC. It is semi-formal and clean, while still maintaining character. Its italic and bold variations also provide versatility. Apparat is a sans serif compliment to Filosofia, and provides excellent readability for long texts. It is not distracting or loud, but clean and classy. It is extremely versatile, with various weights.

A deep purple, Pantone 2597 C, usually associated with royalty, is used as a callback to the name of the building. Its richness also mirrors the rich history of Queen’s Court. Pantone 7408 C, a bright yellow, signifying a gold crown, is used to contrast the purple. This combination of yellow and purple is accessible to the colorblind.

This purple and gold reference QC's "royal" roots.
The serif typreface Filosofia's compliments Apparat's sans-serif simplicity.

Pantone 2597C & Pantone 2597C

Building Interior Signage & Doorplates

This directional signage for the interior of the building sports the Queen's Court word-mark. It incorporates the star motif into its yellow directional arrows.
Door plate for room 101 in Robert's Hall. The room number, "R-101," is written in purple, with a yellow star accent behind it.
Doorplate for room 201 in Robert's Hall. The room number, "R-201," is written in purple, with a yellow star accent behind it.
Doorplate for room 301 in Robert's Hall. The room number, "R-301," is written in purple, with a yellow star accent behind it.

Merchandise

A white crewneck with the QC word-mark across the chest.
A tote bag with the QC logo and purple and yellow accents.
A white t-shirt with the QC word-mark across the chest.
A mug with the QC logo and purple and yellow accents.
A stamp with the Queen's Court word-mark.
A pen with the Queen's Court word-mark. 
Mockup images for crewneck, mug, 
and tote bag courtesy of Freepik.
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