Malanga’s brand identity grabbed my attention nearly immediately with it’s Afro-centric mask mark. The restaurant is an African-New World fusion experience located in Medellin, Colombia.
The African mask is the center point of the identity as the design team uses multiple styles and expressions throughout each touchpoint. Mixed with other tropical prints and pastel colors, the brand’s visual experience evokes a semi-mysterious and intriguing feeling.
That melding of Caribbean and African cultures is spread throughout each touchpoint and lightly married to one another in subtle but powerful ways. An example of this is how the menu covers are made from an crocodile skin texture, and crocodiles are infused in a wallpaper design that’s classic and remarkable.
The interiors leverage the complex, classic, and floral wall papers and introduce heavy brass metals and tropical vibes to somehow make the Atlantic Ocean much smaller in scale.
Malanga is a beautiful example of classic, Art Nouveau revival that we’re seeing pop up more and more.
