Cornell Lab of Ornithology: Visitor Center
Design Studio: C&G Partners
C&G Partners designed interactive exhibits, animations, and digital signage for the Cornell Lab of Ornithology Visitor Center, making complex research accessible while highlighting the human-driven causes behind the loss of billions of birds each year. Digital signage at the entry introduces visitors to the Lab’s global research, citizen-science programs, and beloved birding apps, using motion graphics and live footage to immediately connect local observations to worldwide conservation efforts.
Exhibition, Identity, Animation, Interactive, and Wayfinding
Signage; photography by: Alexandra Brayer
The Birds Here Today installation visualizes real-time bird sightings from around the world alongside observations entered on site, directly linking the Lab’s apps and databases to an interactive, public-facing experience.
Bird Discovery Lab
Throughout the Visitor Center, we updated and expanded interpretive signage to create a cohesive narrative system, unifying legacy content with new digital and physical media while improving clarity, accessibility, and visual consistency.
Interior Drawer; photography by: Alexandra Brayer
Sound Table; developed by TwoLeftHands
At the heart of the Visitor Center, the Bird Discovery Lab and surrounding galleries—including Eyes & Senses, Bones & Beaks, Eggs & Nests, and Feathers & Wings—use hands-on interactives, specimen drawers, immersive illustrations, animations, and sculptural elements to translate avian science into experiential learning.
Bird Discovery Lab
The Sound Table combines audio, animation, and interactive quizzes, allowing multiple visitors to explore bird vocalizations simultaneously through spectrograms, headphones, and responsive digital interfaces.
Wallpaper, signage, updated wall and glass mural
We inherited a new brand developed by Pentagram and expanded it into a fully realized design system. While the core elements—color, type, and initial examples—were established, our role was to extend the system across multiple media and exhibition contexts. Rather than using the branding decoratively, we applied it to organize and clarify content: color signaled subject matter, with yellow in the lobby, white for art labels, and red for Feathers & Wings in the Bird Discovery Lab. Lines and rules became a key compositional tool, used to divide, structure, and connect information throughout the space.
Interpretive Panel
Murmuration Donor Wall; designed by Rachel Lu
Close-up of the murmuration Donor Wall; designed by Rachel Lu
We refreshed wall murals, donor recognition elements, and sculptural features to align with the updated exhibit and archecture language, ensuring visual continuity across physical space, graphics, and digital media.
Exterior Graphics; photography by: Alexandra Brayer
Exterior signage and selfie moment
Across the project, our work bridges Cornell Lab’s research, artwork, and digital tools—transforming apps, data, and scientific knowledge into integrated experiences that inspire learning, participation, and conservation awareness.