Bushwig Festival — 14th Anniversary, NYC

Bushwig doesn’t operate within clean branding frameworks—it thrives in excess, contradiction, and constant evolution. The challenge was to design a system that could hold that chaos without flattening it. It needed to feel inclusive but not diluted, iconic but not predictable. The lineup itself added another layer: a dense constellation of globally recognized drag performers—from Drag Race alumni to Dragula icons—alongside underground talent. The visual language had to elevate this diversity without hierarchy, while still remaining legible across formats ranging from social media to large-scale physical installations. At its core, the problem was about translating a living, breathing subculture into something designed—without losing its edge.

selected illustration sketch

The approach was to build a flexible identity that embraces contrast rather than resolves it. Soft gradient backgrounds create an atmospheric base—almost dreamlike—allowing the more saturated, high-contrast characters to exist as focal disruptions.

These characters function as both mascots and symbols: strange, charming, and slightly off, reflecting the individuality of the performers themselves. The neo-tribal logo anchors the system with a sharp, almost protective presence, giving the identity a sense of cohesion amid the visual noise.

Lineup Artist Flyer

This performance was filmed at the Knockdown Center in Brooklyn, New York, on August 23, 2025.

For the merchandise, we leaned into camp and irony—reinterpreting an Ancient Greek figure through a drag lens, exaggerating form and context by placing it in a gym setting. It becomes theatrical, self-aware, and slightly absurd, aligning with Bushwig’s humor and performativity.

Across all touchpoints—from flyers to on-site visuals—the work was designed not just to represent the event, but to exist within it: loud enough to compete with the environment, but intentional enough to be remembered after it’s over.