nyclgbtsites.org

Raising public awareness about the LGBTQ+ community’s contributions to American history is more important now than ever.

Back in 2017, I worked closely with the Project’s founders to create a bold brand system for the project, and then quickly extended it across digital and print media. The mark captured the city grid, orienting it in physical space, while its bold color palette connected to the movement’s history and vibrancy.

Going as far back as the 17th century, this map-based online platform launched with 100 historic and culturally significant sites across New York City’s five boroughs. Each site was carefully documented and categorized based on its location, historical era, and cultural significance. Profiles of each site include an array of historical content, anecdotes, interviews, imagery, and multimedia. Curated themes connect sites across the city by subjects such as Art & Architecture, Activism Before Stonewall, and Transgender History.

In close collaboration with the project founders and our technology team, I ran UX workshops to help organize this information into a flexible and easy-to-use web experience. Additionally, I executed a UI system, in line with our new brand, to create a vibrant, accessible, and responsive site. I’m proud to say that the site has expertly scaled­—there are now 468 documented historic sites, and the register continues to grow and scale.

We also brought the brand to life in print with presentation templates, stationery, and print collateral to help communicate the project’s importance, whether to a public audience in a talk or tour, applying for grants, or recommending sites to be included in the National and State historic registers.

The project continues to receive awards, including: the Trustees' Award for Organizational Excellence by the National Trust for Historic Preservation in 2022; an award for Excellence in Historic Preservation by the Preservation League of New York State in 2019; and the New York State Historic Preservation Award by the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation in 2018.

It was an honor to work on such an important project!

Agency:
Kiss Me I'm Polish

Development:
Car of Tomorrow

Collaborators:
Agnieszka Gasparska, Creative Director
Andrea Davis, Development Lead