City of Asylum

Editorial design, environmental signage, visual identity

Not everyone is lucky enough to have an organization dedicated to protecting and celebrating the freedom of creative expression in their neighborhood — but we do.

A historic multi-story building with arched windows and detailed architectural elements on a city street corner. Several cars are parked outside, and two pedestrians walk on the sidewalk. There is a streetlamp in front of the building, and neighboring structures include a white Victorian-style building and a red brick building. The sky is clear and blue.

After a massive renovation project, City of Asylum’s new headquarters includes their offices, a restaurant, and a bookstore in a stunning setting on the Central Northside’s main drag.

Close-up of a partial sign for a hotel with red and white 3D letters on a beige stone building facade.

LK developed interior window signage and exterior signage for the new space, incorporating several languages and materials to produce a design truly reflective of this multicultural creative organization.

The window of a restaurant and bar with the words 'Casellula Restaurant and Bar' written on it, reflecting trees and the sky outside.

We worked with a range of partners, including Loysen + Kreuthmeier Architects, Dunham reGroup, Indovina Associates Architects, and TriState Reprographics who cleared many hurdles to ensure the design and lighting met historic requirements.

View of a bookstore storefront with large glass windows and the sign 'City of Asylum Bookstore'. Inside, posters for events and books are visible through the window.

But, before any of that, we helped City of Asylum with their ambitious fundraising campaign, developing a prospectus that showcased their vision for the organization’s new home.

A red greeting card with cut-out windows displaying the words "happy" and "filled" in purple text. The card is on a wooden surface.

A close-up of a red paper with black printed text, placed on a light wood surface.

Open booklet on wooden surface, pages feature text and a large photo of a dilapidated room with peeling paint, debris, and windows.

While their mission helps to protect endangered writers, it also celebrates their words and work. By developing concepts utilizing letterforms from a variety of languages paired with warm and vibrant colors, we helped City of Asylum evolve their visual identity to evoke the joy in what they do.

A digital illustration of various handwritten symbols and characters on an orange background.

Cover of the book 'Smoke and Ashes' by Amitav Ghosh, featuring an illustration of a plant with black and red leaves, and the subtitle 'Opium's Hidden Histories'.

A man standing with his arms crossed in front of a large abstract painting featuring a sky with soft pastel colors and a pattern of elongated white shapes on a blue background. The man is smiling, wearing a black-and-white patterned shirt, gray pants, and a smartwatch.

A jazz musician sitting at drums in a dimly lit room, with a laptop in the background, promoting Thursday night jazz events.

Canvas tote bag with a colorful abstract design and scattered alphabet letters on a light background.

A smiling man with dark skin and short black hair wearing a black T-shirt with a white digital alphabet design on the front, standing against a plain light grey background.

Another project

Pittsburgh arts & lectures

An updated visual identity and website helps the organization to connect celebrated authors with the community, elevate civic discourse, and inspire a passion for the literary arts.