Steps is a casual coffee shop at SFMOMA that is also a platform for the local art community.

Named for the Roman steps of the museum, the logo is inspired by classic coffee shop signs and was designed to be signpainted and work with the central column at it’s entrance. The logotype is an extension of the SFMOMA brand, utilizing the institutional font but given some gravity through the use of all caps and dropshadows.

When I conceived of the identity for Steps Coffee, something I really saw as an integral element of the cafe was creating a platform for local artists by combining illustrations with the more buttoned up look and feel of SFMOMA. To carry this concept through, we commissioned Floss Editions, local artists and printmakers, to create illustrations and paint them onsite.

The signage was finished by hand with signpainting from New Bohemia Signs.