Magdalena Club Berlin
Magdalena Club reopened in February 2016. The new visual identity by 3BKE relies on two constants — the ‘m’ logo that apparently is derived from the venue’s architecture, and the Brewery typeface — pragmatically yet playfully placed against changing (photo)graphic backgrounds, often held in two colors.
Created by Gustavs A. Grinbergs, the Latvian designer who also brought us the wonderfully whimsical Gneisenauette, Brewery is a peculiar hybrid, somewhat similar to a serifless Roman like Stellar, but minus the calligraphic traits, plus triangular mini serifs. It was awarded in the second Linotype Design Contest and released as part of the TakeType Collection in 1997. In 2012, an expanded revision was issued as Brewery No 2. Judging from the short-nosed ‘1’ and the spurred ‘b’, Magdalena uses the old version, though, which is still on the market, despite its undeniable flaws (see e.g. the dots in ‘?!’ vs. ‘¿¡’).
