Meatpacking DistrictPerfect Dissonance

Instilling civic pride in a neighborhood of contrasts and contradictions

NYC’s Meatpacking District is where old and new; grit and sophistication; commerce and culture all collide. Visually placing these contrasting elements side-by-side celebrates the unique creative energy that exists between them, building civic pride by embracing the neighborhood’s contradictions rather than trying to reconcile them.
The last two decades have seen warehouses, hourly hotels, and underground nightclubs become luxury retail, high-end restaurants, and world renowned-art venues in New York City’s Meatpacking District. Along the Hudson River, a formerly industrial swathe of land has transformed – but not behind some new, opaque facade. Quite the opposite, the Meatpacking District’s history bleeds into the present, creating a chic urban district with remnants of a gritty past running through its veins.
The neighborhood’s visual identity makes no attempt to reconcile these opposing elements. Instead, they sit side-by-side, honoring the tension that defines this area and capitalizing on the energy it creates. The story of the Meatpacking District is told through dichotomies. The logo is split between a bold sans-serif and an elegant serif, the website uses two columns that scroll independently, and photography by Sacha Maric captures the often dissonant architecture, spaces, activities, and people at the neighborhood’s heart.
Informative brochures and clear maps provide a guide that presents the Meatpacking District’s chaos as magic, not madness. The website – one of the first of its kind – uses dual-column format to balance the beautiful with the more utilitarian. Users can plan their visit and peruse local attractions at the same time. The digital experience draws visitors into the heart of the community, inviting them to join community yoga, drag brunch, and bingo instead of experiencing it as an outsider passing through.
The Meatpacking District’s contrasts between day and night, culture and retail, chic and gritty are what make it unique. Branding centered on juxtaposition helps celebrate these clashing elements and support the neighborhood’s continued development. Tangibly, that means investments in the Meatpacking District are on the rise and local vacancies are low. But beyond that, impact can be measured through feeling – civic pride is at an all time high as the neighborhood embraces all of the contradictions that make it so beautiful.

NYC’s Meatpacking District is where old and new; grit and sophistication; commerce and culture all collide. Visually placing these contrasting elements side-by-side celebrates the unique creative energy that exists between them, building civic pride by embracing the neighborhood’s contradictions rather than trying to reconcile them.

The last two decades have seen warehouses, hourly hotels, and underground nightclubs become luxury retail, high-end restaurants, and world renowned-art venues in New York City’s Meatpacking District. Along the Hudson River, a formerly industrial swathe of land has transformed – but not behind some new, opaque facade. Quite the opposite, the Meatpacking District’s history bleeds into the present, creating a chic urban district with remnants of a gritty past running through its veins.

The neighborhood’s visual identity makes no attempt to reconcile these opposing elements. Instead, they sit side-by-side, honoring the tension that defines this area and capitalizing on the energy it creates. The story of the Meatpacking District is told through dichotomies. The logo is split between a bold sans-serif and an elegant serif, the website uses two columns that scroll independently, and photography by Sacha Maric captures the often dissonant architecture, spaces, activities, and people at the neighborhood’s heart.

Informative brochures and clear maps provide a guide that presents the Meatpacking District’s chaos as magic, not madness. The website – one of the first of its kind – uses dual-column format to balance the beautiful with the more utilitarian. Users can plan their visit and peruse local attractions at the same time. The digital experience draws visitors into the heart of the community, inviting them to join community yoga, drag brunch, and bingo instead of experiencing it as an outsider passing through.

The Meatpacking District’s contrasts between day and night, culture and retail, chic and gritty are what make it unique. Branding centered on juxtaposition helps celebrate these clashing elements and support the neighborhood’s continued development. Tangibly, that means investments in the Meatpacking District are on the rise and local vacancies are low. But beyond that, impact can be measured through feeling – civic pride is at an all time high as the neighborhood embraces all of the contradictions that make it so beautiful.