Napa’s artsy
side of the tracks
The Rail Arts District was transforming a visually blighted two-mile stretch of industrial warehouses along the Vine Trail and the Napa Valley Wine Train tracks into an outdoor art gallery that would feature public art from local, regional and international artists. Truss was retained to give the new cultural destination a brand identity and website.
An ambitious vision
We probed and learned that our client’s vision was to create one of the most important non-profit art districts in the world. A project that would be a lightning rod for creativity, conversation and commerce in the community. We knew that a vision of this magnitude deserved a brand positioning, name and visual identity every bit as ambitious.
A RAD new identity
We started by repositioning the project from mere local art program to transformative community project. To support this gutsier vision we adopted the district’s acronym as its new name—RAD. This became the impetus for an edgy new visual identity that borrows from the punk spirit of the art itself. The new RAD website was designed around a powerful new rallying cry. RAD isn’t community beautification. It’s culture-making at its finest.
Positioning
Naming
Brand Strategy
Visual Identity
Website
Promotional Items
“Truss just seems to have a way of seeing things. The insights, expertise, passion and vision they continually bring allow us to work creatively and collaboratively to build great places and experiences.”
Scott Goldie, partner
Brooks Street & Co-Founder, RAD Napa
The results
RAD’s logo, visual identity, and website have been met with overwhelming support from our clients, Napa citizens and visitors, and the international art community RAD has engaged. Since launching, 17 artists have colored RAD’s walls and utility boxes with images that range from the esoteric to the heartwarming to the amusing.
