PORTO ROCHA embrace Times New Roman in their pared-back identity for ‘post-digital’ agency live

Located in both São Paulo and New York, live is an independent agency that blurs the lines between the physical and digital worlds. They look to use technology to be more conscious and human-focused in the age of overwhelming content and misinformation; going as far as describing their work for international clientele such as Nike and Netflix as ‘post-digital.’ To capture their unique approach, as well as mark their development as an agency, live hired PORTO ROCHA to craft an entirely fresh brand identity and communications strategy. The New York-based design studio’s typographic solution embraces the universally accessible serif Times New Roman; unearthing an unusual selection of its glyphs to form a distinctive, open-source wordmark. The choice of Times New Roman represents live’s conversational tone of voice while stripping away the exclusivity commonly associated with a brand asset. Instead, the wordmark can literally be recreated, copied and inserted by anyone with access to a text application. Alongside the pared-back typographic language, PORTO ROCHA chose to add warmth to the identity by layering in a smiley symbol, radiant yellow and a selection of everyday materials. The result feels honest and optimistic, providing a clear and direct platform for live’s future-focused output to live.