Base Design gave the Museum of Sex a stop-sign wordmark that doubles as an exhibit frame

Founded in 2002 by Dan Gluck 'without much of a guide', the museum had grown a sophisticated programme — art, fashion, history and science through the lens of sex — but sat in New York's crowded museum scene under a cloud of misconceptions, with no brand communicating that depth.

Set 'Museum of Sex' in blunt capitals that stop people like a stop sign — then let the wordmark itself frame the exhibit imagery.

Min Lew's team (design director Dan Peterson, designers Ethan Sung and Wael Morcos) built a bold sans-serif identity whose posters turn the name into a frame: lips, skin and other imagery held inside the letters, generating conversation 'without being overtly crude.'

No results were published with the rebrand. What it changed: an institution with a gag-name now had a system where the name itself did the work — matter-of-fact type that signals seriousness, plus a poster format turning every wall into an exhibit preview, positioning the museum as a must-see for locals and visitors alike.

The Museum of Sex opened in New York in 2002, founded by Dan Gluck 'without much of a guide', and made its name with the inaugural exhibit NYCSEX: How New York Transformed Sex in America, a look at the city's past and present sexual subcultures. Thirteen years on, it had built 'a compelling body of work with a modern yet sophisticated feel' — art, fashion, history and science viewed through the lens of sex. What it lacked, in PRINT's telling, was 'a brand to match.'

Base Design — the New York firm with offices in Brussels and Geneva, already known for pushing boundaries — took it on. Partner and creative director Min Lew described the museum as 'a creative breeding ground for those who seek a deeper understanding of sexuality', and her team set 'Museum of Sex' in a bold sans-serif whose power one would 'compare... to the impact of a stop sign' — all but forcing passers-by to halt and take in what is in front of them.

The system's second move: the wordmark becomes a frame. Posters hold photographs and illustrations — lips, skin, phallic symbols from the museum's world — inside the lettering, generating conversation without crudeness and nudging onlookers to explore their curiosity and enter. Concept applications paired the identity with work by Keith Haring, Bompas & Parr and others from the museum's collection to show the system at scale.

The name is the museum's biggest liability and biggest asset; setting it in blunt capitals converts the joke into a statement of intent.

The wordmark-as-frame device makes every poster an exhibit preview, so the identity keeps producing content by itself.

It solved the misconception problem without a slogan: the straightness of the type argues that the institution is serious.

A museum selling 'sex' to a general New York audience has to suggest rather than show — the frame idea draws people in instead of shutting them out.

When the name is the objection, don't soften it — typeset it with total straightness. A blunt wordmark plus a frame system let a stigmatised museum look institutional while keeping the wink.

PRINT profiled the system in February 2016 and showed concept applications pairing the identity with pieces by Keith Haring, Rich Simmons, Lernert & Sander and Bompas & Parr. No performance figures for the rebrand were published; the museum's own site claimed future exhibits would secure it 'a well-deserved, distinguished place in history.'