The Idea:

Can you get people excited to eat at a venue long-thought unappealing and out of touch? Can you express a thoughtful brand story based on the themes devised by ownership?
These were the questions posed by the restauranteurs of the new ownership of the restaurant space at the Art Gallery of Alberta when they approached my team and me.
The kicker was: short timelines and two ideas that could be first pitched to the client before then being taken to the AGA for approval.
My team and I set to work on two themes. The first was Dear Jane, a concept based on love letters to dining and to food, and fresh ingredients. The Dear Jane concept was one based on expressions of love through paper, ink, food and dining.
Through the brand’s creation we integrated elements that considered the space at the AGA as inspiration; tying in ink splotches and paint smears with the idea of sauces and the plating of fine dining. While ensuring that the “love letters to food” were utilized as decor throughout the restaurant.

The second concept was that of May, an homage to the least celebrated month in agriculture (as the harvest months are the feasting and celebration months), the month in which the seeds of the crops are planted.
With a farm-to-table approach to the restaurant, the brand was built utilizing a gold and green aesthetic and simple typefaces, matched with the elegance of integrating the seed into the restaurant’s wordmark.

With two concepts for the restauranteurs to pitch, the AGA selected May, which opened toward the end of the pandemic with much fanfare.