The cats that met Michelangelo.
The Idea:
Okay, so maybe these cats didn’t, but their ancestors certainly did. Street cats have been an iconic and essential part of Italy’s history for centuries. So essential, that in 2001 they were named part of Italy’s “bio-heritage”. For years these cats have taken refuge in ruins across Italy and been cared for by the local people.
Tesoro is a chain of cat sanctuaries in Italy that reside within ancient ruins. Housing these cats in historical areas is environmentally efficient and helps draw tourist traffic to the sanctuary. Tesoro emphasizes and informs people on the deep connections that the street cats have to the city, people, and history of Italy.
Classic Dreamy Graceful
The Work
Logo
Naming
Hand Lettering
Web Design
The Process:
When thinking about the visual language of Tesoro, expressing the connection between the ancient architecture and the cats was essential. Subtly intertwining these static ruins with the lively forms of cats proved to be a challenge. In order to bridge this gap, I pulled out the rounded forms of the architecture and cats and the textures of Italy’s historical sites as more understated components to pair with the more straight-forward imagery of cats and Italian ruins.
Forming the logo, I wanted to lean into the playfulness and rounded forms of the cats. I decided to create a completely hand-done wordmark in order to accentuate the curved edges and interlocking letters and to make a unique and memorable logo. Tesoro was chosen for the name because it means “treasure” in Italian and therefore emphasizes the value that these cats hold in Italian society and history.
Final Logo
Logo Iteration