Tidal Library: A Public Culture Identity That Changes with Time

The library stands between an old dock and housing. It preserves local records and hosts children's reading, oral history, and evening screenings. Its earlier visuals used waves as decoration, leaving its ongoing exchange of knowledge unexpressed.

The identity needs to move between quiet reading and public events across signs, library cards, posters, and small digital interfaces. We examined the rhythms shared by tide records, collection numbers, and page edges.

Two horizontal lines and a movable page unit form the mark. The lines represent tide levels; the unit shifts with dates, activities, or layout proportions. Deep sea blue and old paper white are core colors, with coral orange or mist green for seasonal events.

Humanist sans serif type and condensed numerals create a stable grid for dates, call numbers, and places. Titles can shift within the grid like tides.

The system is demonstrated across entrance flags, library cards, monthly programs, children's stickers, and a responsive website. Each touchpoint stays recognizable with its own arrangement.