Innovation Labs Identity and Environmental Graphic Design for Harvard University, 2011–2016.

When Harvard sought an identity for its newly formed Innovation Lab, it became clear early on that, first and foremost, it needed to be welcoming—to the academic community (as an interdisciplinary center for entrepreneurship) and to the local community of residents in Allston. The identity also needed to be flexible enough to support the labs’ highly diverse, entrepreneurial, and interdisciplinary mission. It was envisioned that Harvard Innovation Labs would welcome students, faculty, researchers, and entrepreneurs from across the University and the local community, as well as visitors from around the world. It was imagined that the symbol applied to the facade could represent Harvard innovation “broadly”—graphic shorthand for the multitude of initiatives, sites, and efforts it could encompass. Lastly, those leading the effort hoped to avoid cliché symbols (think a light bulb, etc) in favor of something more icon-like. Working alongside the architects, planners, and interior designers from Shepley Bulfinch, I served as brand and visual identity lead on the project. The first site was the former headquarters of WGBH,1 which was renovated and transformed into a vibrant innovation center connected to the business school campus.

On a fast-track schedule, our team developed a series of concepts that were initially presented on a spectrum of “Harvard” to “Un-Harvard.” For instance, at the far end of the spectrum, we presented the bold idea of disguising the building entirely, perhaps as a boutique hotel (largely inspired by the Boston urban apparel store Bodega). On the near end of the spectrum were concepts that used more traditional academic and Harvard iconography, such as the Harvard seal. The “Hi” icon sat somewhere in the middle. The Hi icon resembles elements on the periodic table and app-like icons, such as now used by Adobe and others for apps. As such, the Hi identity is more of an “icon” or “mark” rather than what some understand as a logo. The Harvard and Allston communities alike quickly fell in love with this symbol of “Harvard innovation.” The illuminated “Hi” icon that was installed on the main building’s facade is nearly eight feet square. Months after the building opened, I received an email from Harvard informing me that school children—as their school buses drove by were waving “Hi” back at the building.

Just as our design team commenced working on this project, we attended a virtual workshop with the New York-based identity designer Sagi Haviv2 of Chermayeff & Geismar & Haviv. In his workshop, Haviv suggested the following criteria for designing a “good” graphic identity:

  • Appropriate in form and concept
  • Pragmatic: works well in the required range of applications and media
  • Simple and bold
  • Distinctive and memorable

Years after developing the Harvard Innovation Labs identity system, and as an iteration of the innovation-minded “T-shaped person”—I began using the letter H to describe those who excel at combining depth of skill with depth of knowledge. This I described as more of an “H-shaped person.”3 Even more curiously, some now interpreted the Hi symbol to signify human innovation, human intelligence, and perhaps even human influence.

Credits—

Press—

Recognition—

  • Print: Redefining Design, 66.6, Regional Design Annual, Full Page Feature, December 2012.
  • Above the Fold: Alumni Works in Design, 3rd Biennial Juried Alumni Exhibition, Sandra and David Bakalar Gallery, Massachusetts College of Art and Design, June-July, 2015.

Case Studies

Other—

Footnotes

  1. “WGBH-TV.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 29 May 2026, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WGBH-TV. ↩︎
  2. “Sagi Haviv.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 9 May 2026, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sagi_Haviv. ↩︎
  3. See “Collaboration” and “Critique” in An Incomplete List of C-Words for the Creative Course. ↩︎

FILED IN: Brand Design


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