How did Polonsky & Friends blend Peru, Japan and NYC in one identity?

Papa San’s identity captures the electric energy of 1960s cultural rebellion, channeling a decade when youth movements in both Peru and Japan challenged tradition through art, politics and radical self-expression. Created by New York-based Polonsky & Friends for the Nikkei restaurant located in The Spiral building in Hudson Yards, the branding draws from this volatile moment when post-war societies were redefining their national identities. Nikkei refers to people of Japanese descent who have emigrated from Japan and settled in other countries, along with their descendants. It’s a broad term that includes those with varying degrees of Japanese ancestry and those who may not even speak Japanese. In Peru, the Nikkei community has created a distinctive fusion cuisine that blends Japanese techniques with Peruvian ingredients and flavours. “The team asked for a visual identity that could capture the cultural collision of Peru, Japan and New York, anchored in great food, but driven by mood,” explains Anna Polonsky, Creative Director & Founder of Polonsky & Friends. “They described Papa San as a Peruvian Izakaya, playful and unorthodox, with lots of raw fish, smoke, and music. A place that feels like a sexy night out, not a quiet dinner.” The brief referenced Wong Kar Wai’s saturated cinematography and 1960s Hong Kong, positioning the restaurant as a film set where every visual element contributes to an immersive scene. The decade provided rich creative territory for the studio’s research. “The 60s were a goldmine, a decade of rupture, rebellion and reinvention,” notes Fuad Smeke, the graphic designer on the project. “We looked at how both Peru and Japan were redefining their identities post-war. In Peru, we traced the visual history of the Nikkei community and how it resurged after decades of marginalisation, combining Japanese roots with Andean pride.” Japan's post-war boom period offered abundant visual references, from the graphic design movement led by figures like Tadanori Yokoo to underground art scenes that blurred fine art with commercial design. “Yokoo, especially, was a huge influence,” Smeke explains. “His chaotic layering, surreal colours and use of traditional iconography as pop détournement felt exactly like the kind of tension Papa San needed.” Meanwhile, Peru was wrestling with its own cultural identity, pushing toward modernisation while reclaiming Indigenous heritage and witnessing the Nikkei community’s return to cultural visibility. The typographic approach reflects this cultural hybridity through an unexpected pairing. Jackson MN, despite its Midwestern American origins, echoes the bold, screen-printed energy of 1960s packaging from both cultures. “It was a stealthy choice," Smeke reveals. “While it originates from Americana, it echoes the bold, screen-printed energy of 1960s packaging and signage, both in Peru and Japan. It felt familiar, eye-catching and oddly perfect.” AC37 Siemens provides the futuristic counterpoint, referencing both retro-futuristic Japanese typography and Peruvian stencil vernacular. “The pairing is about tension: Jackson grounds us in the past; Siemens shoots us forward.”