Classic Logo: Beekman-Downtown Hospital, 1969
Philip Gips' 1969 logo for Beekman Downtown Hospital
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As part of an extensive urban renewal project for Manhattan the Beekman-Downtown Hospital underwent a period of modernisation. This introduced new facilities and technologies to the hospital.
A new visual identity programme was developed during the same period to outwardly convey the hospital’s new modernised facilities as well as addressing and improving communication and minimising production costs.
This economic consideration was particularly important as the hospital was funded through donations. Balancing important community communication with the cost of printing and postage had to be carefully considered.
Philip Gips, who had been responsible for the hospital’s annual reports, was responsible for developing the new visual identity and logo for the hospital.
The logo employs a cross motif, an international symbol for medical care and first aid. The dimensional element lends the cross a distinctive and dynamic element.
This implication of depth and direction, and the open righthand corner was said to express the deep commitment to delivering medical services to the community and suggest progress into the future.
The logo was applied across signage and printed materials with a metallic gold where possible, and as process gold elsewhere. In instances such as ambulances, the logo was used in red.
Employing a gold metallic spot colour in conjunction with powerful black and white imagery, the clarity of considered typographical layouts and new print formats, Philip Gips improved the visual immediacy of the hospital’s community communication whilst reducing production and postage costs.
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