Principal opens design and architecture magazine Ligne to more readers — The Brand Identity – Home of the Greatest in Graphic & Brand Design

Ligne, an independent design and architecture magazine from Quebec, Canada, approached Montreal-based design studio Principal for a new look that would help it expand to a wider readership. The brief started with substance rather than form – asking who Ligne is, who it speaks to and what part it plays in design and contemporary living. From its findings, Principal then rebuilt the brand platform, the logo, the editorial layouts and the digital experience.

“We kept returning to a simple yet demanding premise: good design should be accessible to everyone, without sacrificing its depth or value,” explains Creative Director & Partner, Bryan-K. Lamonde. “We also needed to accommodate the full breadth of Quebec’s design scene, a vibrant ecosystem spanning established architects, emerging studios, artisans, fashion, food, interiors and lifestyle. The identity called for a flexible editorial platform capable of featuring a profile on a celebrated architect alongside a roundup of local patio furniture,” he continues, “treating both with equal conviction. The tone had to feel warm and optimistic, yet refined and confident enough to earn respect across the design community. By treating every story with the same meticulous care, the platform naturally elevates every contributor.”

Principal explored a wide range of directions for the wordmark before settling on a geometric construction that aims to look like it’s always been there. “Because Ligne translates to ‘line,’ there was an obvious temptation to lean on a graphic line, just as the previous identity had,” Lamonde tells us. “Instead, we took the opposite approach, building long-term recognition around the wordmark itself.” Throughout the process, the benchmark was the magazine cover. “The wordmark needed to command the top of the page and remain legible on a crowded newsstand rack,” he adds. “Once it proved itself there, it extended naturally across every other application.” Colour drives the variation between issues, leaving the wordmark as the constant. “By keeping it simple, bold and instantly recognisable, we allowed everything else the freedom to shift around it,” Lamonde details.

For the typography, Principal picked Formula Type’s sans serif FT Habit alongside Commercial Type’s slab serif Successor. “The two typefaces we chose both carry strong, distinct personalities, and the interplay between them generates rhythm throughout the publication. Hero headlines and pull quotes become expressive graphic moments in their own right,” Designer Éloïse Carrier tells us. “Paired with shifting background colours, these moments give each article its own character while keeping the magazine from ever feeling repetitive.” Body text, captions and credits are the stable elements that give readers a consistent experience from issue to issue, and the grid is generous and flexible, built to adapt to diverse article formats and to give the editorial team room for new kinds of content.

The approach to colour opens the magazine up to a general reader without diluting its subject matter. “A broad palette does much of that heavy lifting, creating a cheerful and approachable first impression. It makes the magazine a pleasure to flip through, prioritising casual browsing over dense reading,” Carrier explains. “The coloured logo plays a similar role, softening any sense that design needs to be precious or exclusive. At the same time, strong typography and structured layouts anchor its visual sophistication.” Principal gave colour as much weight in the system as typography and photography. “While the colour system feels free, it rests on a highly structured foundation – a balance of bright colours, darker tones and neutral backgrounds drawn from a palette of fresh, spring-like hues,” she continues. In print, background colours that sit behind imagery add energy to even a restrained architectural project and give each spread its own point of view. On screen, coloured typography sits over full-bleed imagery, keeping the photography centre stage.

“The goal was never to break away from the category, but to evolve it. Architecture and design publishing shares a familiar language: black and white, restrained layouts and neutral sans serifs,” Carrier notes. “We retained key elements of that vocabulary while layering in greater warmth, colour and personality.” FT Habit does its part there, its proportions and character keeping it from looking purely neutral. “The resulting identity is both credible for professionals and inviting to a broader audience,” she concludes. “Ligne’s authority is not merely visual; it is earned through the editorial work itself.”