This talk from Nicer Tuesdays in 2019 features Mitch Paone from DIA Studio discussing the studio’s approach to kinetic identity design. He explains how movement, rhythm, and cross-disciplinary research influence their work, and shows how DIA builds identity systems that behave dynamically across different formats. The talk gives a close look at how the studio thinks about creativity, motion, and the future of design.
The talk shows that DIA’s process is built around a cycle of input, improvisation, and output. Mitch highlights how important it is to keep the improvisation stage free from judgment so ideas can develop without pressure. He also shows how movement, choreography, and patterns in nature inspire their kinetic typography. Another key message is the need for design to function across formats rather than staying tied to static outcomes. As technology develops, emotional intention and human curation become more important than ever.
The main aim of the talk is to explain how DIA creates motion-led identities and how they draw from unexpected sources such as biology, dance, and biomechanics. Mitch wants to encourage designers to think in a flexible, future-focused way and to design systems that adapt to new technologies rather than remain static. He also argues that emotional depth and intuition should guide the design process.
DIA’s method relies heavily on improvisational making, where rhythm and movement inform the shapes and behaviour of typography. Mitch describes how the studio studies natural motion, gestures, and choreography, then translates those movements into visual systems. The process separates experimentation from critique so ideas can grow naturally before being refined. This approach is applied consistently across the studio’s client projects.
This process leads to identity systems that move, shift, and react across digital, print, and interactive spaces. DIA’s work becomes instantly recognisable because the rhythm and physics behind the motion create a strong sense of personality. Their motion-first mindset helps push the field beyond static logos and produces work that communicates energy and emotion. The workflow stays flexible, experimental, and prepared for new technologies.
The talk reinforces the idea that motion is central to how modern identities communicate and that improvisation can produce more interesting results than strict planning. Designers benefit from gathering inspiration from many areas of life, especially by paying attention to how the world moves. Mitch also stresses that emotional intention and human intuition remain vital as automation grows. A successful identity today is one that can adapt, evolve, and exist across any platform or medium.
Here 2017: Triboro is a presentation given by David Heasty from Triboro during the Here 2017 conference. The talk reviews Triboro’s body of work and explains how the studio approaches graphic design, branding and visual identity, often combining typography, information design and conceptual thinking. Triboro is known for its inventive projects, including the celebrated “Wrong Color Subway Map”.
The talk reveals that Triboro values design that challenges assumptions, for example, by subverting familiar visual systems (such as subway maps) to force the user to re-see them. The studio’s identity lies in playful but rigorous experimentation: their work blends structure and surprise, function and concept. Through this approach, design becomes more than decoration, it becomes commentary, critique, and re-imagining of environments we take for granted.