Branding & Integrated Marketing

While the substance of the University of Houston System’s public art collection was competitive with other major university collections, its profile was virtually non-existent. Awareness was limited by poor identification and wayfinding across campuses, the absence of a coherent brand strategy, and a near-total lack of external communications. You can’t build an audience for something people can’t find and have no framework to understand.

CKP tackled the visibility problem by starting with research — developing recommendations for a full relaunch of the program. That included concept and design presentations for the new brand identity, photography, and multimedia assets needed for the active campaign. Every element was built to work across physical environments and digital channels simultaneously.

The public relations campaign for the relaunch event was built to cement the new brand identity in a single night. CKP executed a media strategy that gave arts and culture press, education media, and Houston-area outlets a story worth covering — and opened the event to livestream viewers, which turned a local brand launch into a public moment anyone could participate in.

160% of the original attendance goal reached. 58M+ cumulative impressions and $241K+ in publicity value — for a one-night event.

It was the best-attended event in the Public Art program’s 50-year history. Research paired with a modern brand identity turned a quiet collection into a high-profile public victory.