Using our In Perspectives framework, we approached this transformation through deep immersion and intense collaboration.

Our team traveled to the source, Cincinnati, Ohio, where we executed an extensive stakeholder alignment process, facilitating workshops with their internal leadership team, board, community members, and partners, while spending time on the ground engaging with local neighborhood businesses. During our stay, we had the pleasure of visiting their pre-construction site in the historic Walnut Hills Business District, ensuring our approach complemented the organisation’s physical expansion.

The ultimate breakthrough was hidden in plain sight.

Woven directly into the building’s architecture, during the renovation of the 1909 structure, workers uncovered a hand-painted sign beneath the window boards that read “1000 & 1 colors.” Instead of overlooking this as a historical artifact, it became the engine of the rebrand. After an intensive exploratory naming process, the name 1001 Colors (pronounced “one thousand and one colors”) was formalized to represent the expansive, limitless possibilities for community and personal development that the organization catalyzes.

Strategically, we anchored the positioning around a brand personality that balances an approachable yet distinguished demeanor.

It warmly welcomes the unconventional, remains highly professional, and is deeply infused with joy and inspiration. This successfully shifted their narrative from a local arts producer to a definitive national pillar transforming and uplifting communities through the infinite potential of human ingenuity.

We built an enduring, adaptive brand universe designed to project their local magic onto a national stage.

• Brand Strategy & Positioning: Developed an updated brand strategy and institutional positioning framework designed to propel the organization from a local mural producer to a leading national pillar, refocusing their core message around transforming communities and uplifting artists of all ages. 
• Visual Identity System: A dynamic brand universe anchored by a thick, bold, hand-drawn scribble icon that subtly illustrates the sketched number “1001.” It captures the raw human touch, craft, and ideation behind every piece of art, illustrating how every great work begins with a simple idea or sketch.
• Typography & Visual Language: Paired the playful, hand-drawn scribbles and lines with the clean and professional font Owners Bold. We implemented a signature staggered typography treatment that echoes the visual rhythm of a scribble, providing a recognizable edge and a distinct, consistent typographic style across all brand collateral.
• Implementation & Strategic Advisory: Served as core consultants on the brand’s implementation post-branding, guiding the seamless translation of the new identity across their digital web presence and physical environmental signage.

The strategic overhaul is the resolution of the organization’s national identity friction, replacing a crowded name and outdated identity with a singular brand that provides them with immediate distinction.

By leaning into the literal fabric of their new headquarters, the brand honors 30 years of grassroots equity while establishing a sophisticated, scalable framework for national expansion. 1001 Colors now possesses increased institutional legitimacy to command respect from major philanthropic partners and global artists alike, ensuring they stand out both locally and nationally while keeping the creative potential of youth at the center of their universe.

“We chose the name 1001 Colors because it gives us a name that is truly our own, distinct, memorable, and positions us to stand out both locally and nationally.” 

“It’s a powerful expression of who we are today and a forward-looking decision that reflects the scale of our ambition and our belief that creativity opens pathways for every young person, every artist, and every community we serve.”  

— Colleen Houston, CEO & Creative Director, 1001 Colors