A logo helps connect an organization with its patrons, yet for its entire history C.C. Mellor Memorial Library was without a recognizable visual symbol to go along with its name.
When library director Erin Pierce decided it was time for that to change, it turned out that symbol was waiting within the architecture of the 104-year-old building itself. CCM worked with the husband-and-wife design team of Kimberly and Alan Rader to create something that visitors to CCM Edgewood would know immediately: the three distinct windows over the main entrance.
“We wanted to incorporate something that spoke specifically to the facility, and one of the things we realized was that the three windows were very visually stunning and very easily identifiable with CCM as a brand,” Rader said.
Although the library is much more than just the building it calls home, there’s something special about CCM Edgewood. The Mission-style building designed by architect Edward B. Lee opened in 1918 and is designated by the Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation as a Historic Landmark. In his book, “Pittsburgh: An Urban Portrait,” author Franklin Toke called it a “public monument” and “one of the best public buildings in the city.”
“So much of what we do is out in the community, in the schools, the parks, on our patrons’ devices, in our Forest Hills location,” Pierce said. “But the heart of the library is right here in this building that is instantly recognizable, a beacon to the community. This logo does a spectacular job of pulling that together.”