Amy S. Chen
Graphic Design
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Vincent Valdez:
Just a Dream...EXHIBITION
Celebrating one of the most important American painter working today, Just a Dream… is Vincent Valdez’ first major museum survey featuring work from over twenty years across all media. The exhibition addresses American politics today, including topics such as boxing, lynchings of Mexican Americans, border walls, politics, greed, the Ku Klux Klan, and the failings and triumphs of society. The exhibition is co-organized by MASS MoCA and the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston (CAMH), with a biligual exhibition catalog published by both museums right before the exhibition opened at MASS MoCA.

ROLE
Graphic Design & Vinyl Installer

FIELDExhibition
YEAR2025
LOCATIONMASS MoCA

DELIVERABLESIdentity, Wall Text, Gallery Guide, Banner, Billboard


The exhibition includes more than just Valdez’s famous paintings. Towards the end of the exhibition, there are two flatfiles filled of childhood drawings and photographs.
Complimentary vinyl wall text for a trompe l’œil boxing helmet.



WALL TEXT The visual identity was based on the exhibition catalog (designed by Bob Faust), published right before the MASS MoCA exhibition opened. The rigid typefaces were chosen for their old English references and militaristic feel, and the pale fleshy pink was inspired by the underpainting color Valdez uses across many of his works.

With an exisiting visual identity, we were tasked to modify the assets to fit MASS MoCA’s galleries. We decided to use pink for the wall color to create an impactful opening to the exhibition, as well as for the museum since it was the first exhibition visitors experience as they enter the museum. Emphasizing Valdez’s underpainting color also spotlights his painting process and introduces the exhibition as a museum survey rather than an exhibition on a singular concept. 

Special attention was given to a painting titled Hello America installed on the same wall as the title and didactic. To organize all the elements on one wall, we prioritized the painting as the main focus of the wall text and framed the text in hierarchical order around the painting, resulting in a composition that balances art and educational text while directing visitors’ attention to the left towards the rest of the galleries.

 

Exhibition catalog designed by Bob Faust

Object labels for the 120 artworks in the exhibition.

GALLERY GUIDE To accompany the visitor’s experience, a 16-page booklet was designed to categorize the exhibition’s 100+ artworks, and highlight a handful of major artworks and its historical references. However, knowing an exhibition catalog was being marketed alongside the exhibition, we wanted to differenciate the gallery guide by leaning into the simplicity of the guide’s size and paper, and ultimately making it feel like a free comprehensive pamphlet that visitors can put in their pocket, use as a quick reference, and then take home as a keepsake.


TYPE16-page booklet
SIZE6 x 8.5 in.
PAPER60# Text Opaque




BILLBOARD Installed right outside the museum is a two-panel billboard that acts as an extension of Valdez’ exhibition. We worked in collaboration with Valdez to provide mockups for his ideas, ultimately settling on a design that combined crops and modified pieces of an existing drawing.

The billboard not only brought Valdez’ work out into the local community, but also became a effective backdrop for marketing photography and video collaborations.

Vincent Valdez and his friend and fellow musician Nick Gaitan performing “Pickin’ Sides” in front of the billboard.
Vincent Valdez in front of the billboard.


BANNER

In addition to the billboard, a 15-foot mesh banner was designed and installed in MASS MoCA’s main parking lot to promote the exhibition.
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