ABOUT
SADA SPACE
tagging system within a visual identity
I was invited by the Public Service Agency to develop a visual system for the website’s tag navigation. These tags needed to hold space: abstract, open-ended, and adaptable, without describing the topics directly. They had to support connections across previous publications, and scale with future ones. So how do you design structure without rigidity? And how do you make something abstract enough to grow, but specific enough to hold meaning? The answer, unexpectedly, came through the metaphor of a sticker sheet. At first, it seemed like an odd reference. But its visual logic made sense: flexible yet cohesive, expressive without being prescriptive.
Because the website acts as a digitised magazine with a textured background, a grounded serif typeface, and a layout that echoes the feel of reading something printed, I leaned into that sensibility when designing the tags. I opted for collage-inspired shapes with soft gradients, giving each tag a distinct visual tone while keeping them recognisably part of a whole. The result is a visual system that doesn’t try to explain the stories — it makes space for them. It connects rather than categorises. It brings tempo and legibility to a layered archive, guiding without ever closing the narrative down.