METAMOR

A winery identity rooted in place and transformation

METAMOR is a fictional boutique winery identity rooted in Kfar Kanna, Galilee. The project began as an academic brief to create a winery from scratch and developed into a full brand system around transformation, ritual and inward experience.

Year: 2026
Type: Brand Identity, Packaging, Web, Print
Role: Art Direction, Graphic Design
Tools: Illustrator, Photoshop, Figma

Transformation without literal symbolism

The brand is built around the idea of wine as a threshold: between place and memory, body and spirit, matter and feeling. Kfar Kanna became the conceptual anchor, connecting the identity to the story of transformation without using literal religious imagery.

What if a brand could be experienced without seeing it?

Rather than defining Metamor through conventional brand attributes, I explored its identity as if it were a living presence. By translating the brand into architecture, scent, objects, rituals and atmosphere, I established an emotional framework that later guided every visual decision — from the logo to the packaging.

01

If Metamor was a person

Elegant.
Reserved.
Timeless.
Present.

Portrait study — elegant, distant, sharp

02

If Metamor dressed itself

Architectural silhouettes.
Ceremonial garments.
Quiet luxury.

09

If Metamor had habits

Slow rituals.
Reading.
Writing.
Silence.
Observing.

Pre-Raphaelite painting of a woman at her mirror

From research to system

From emotion to identity

These references became the foundation of every design decision. Rather than copying visual aesthetics, they established a coherent emotional language that informed the logo, typography, packaging, materials and overall visual system.

Brand Personality
Emotional Language
Logo
Typography
Labels
Packaging
Visual Identity

The final name needed to feel timeless rather than descriptive.

Instead of searching for something that sounded luxurious or directly referenced wine, the objective was to find a word capable of expressing transformation, silence and permanence.

Threshold
Vessel
Mutatio
Metara
Metamor

Why Metamor

Among all explored directions, "Metamor" captured the project's essence most precisely. Derived from the idea of metamorphosis, the name suggests transformation without becoming literal. Its short structure, measured sound and timeless character aligned naturally with the visual identity that was simultaneously emerging. Rather than describing wine, it describes an experience.

The symbol emerged through a dialogue between vessel, architecture and transformation.

Rather than searching for a finished mark immediately, the process explored several interpretations of the project's central ideas. Vessel-like silhouettes, architectural thresholds and organic divisions gradually converged into a single visual language.

Direction 01 — The Vessel

The first direction explored the vessel as both a physical object and a symbolic container. These studies focused on symmetry, inner space and the interplay between two forms becoming one.

Direction 02 — The Threshold

The second direction moved toward architectural forms. Arches, steps and vertical openings became metaphors for passage, permanence and gradual transformation.

Direction 03 — Convergence

The final direction brought the organic and architectural ideas together. The mark became more pared-back, allowing the silhouette and negative space to suggest transformation without illustrating it directly.

Wordmark and composition

Alongside the symbol, different typefaces, proportions and lockup structures were tested to determine how the name could coexist with the mark without competing with it.

The selected mark

The final mark preserves the ambiguity discovered throughout the process. It can be read as a vessel, an architectural threshold or two organic forms divided by a narrow passage. Its meaning remains open, while its proportions give the wider identity a stable and recognisable centre.

The pattern began where architecture met living matter.

From the beginning, the visual language was intended to feel both structural and alive. Rather than relying on familiar wine imagery, the process explored stone architecture, branching systems and biological structures in search of a form that could feel ancient, organic and unfamiliar at the same time.

Between stone and tissue

The first studies compared the permanence of old architecture with the movement of living systems. Stone surfaces, cracks, branches and vascular networks shared a similar visual logic: density, division, erosion and continuous growth.

Reference photograph of bare tree branches against the sky

Reference photograph of a dense vascular, coral-like structure

An unexpected source

The structure of the placenta became an unexpected point of departure. Its dense vascular network contained the drama, complexity and organic movement the identity required. The image was not used literally, but as raw material for visual abstraction.

Early tracing study derived from a dense vascular structure

Removing the literal

The pattern became more effective as its original source became less recognisable. Through repetition, cropping and changes in scale, it could be read simultaneously as branching tissue, stone veins, cracks or an unfamiliar landscape.

A cropped detail of the pattern isolating a single branching cluster

The final visual language

The final pattern preserves the energy of the original structure while functioning as an abstract surface. It introduces living irregularity into an otherwise controlled identity, creating tension between organic growth and architectural restraint.

The final METAMOR pattern, a mirrored vascular linework structure

A system of reduction

Black and white was a deliberate decision from the beginning. By removing color, proportion, texture and typography became the primary carriers of the identity.

01Structure over decoration
02Transformation without literal illustration
03Structure and material before color

The pattern completed the identity by introducing living irregularity into its architectural order.

A quiet system with tactile tension

The identity uses a controlled monochrome system, thin typography and organic linework inspired by maps, roots, stone and internal landscapes.

METAMOR NOCTIS

METAMOR WINERY NOCTIS CABERNET SAUVIGNON KFAR KANNA / GALILEE

Black

White

Bronze

The identity is treated as a compact toolkit: a mark, a typographic voice, controlled color and organic drawing logic that can move between label, print and digital contexts.

The label was designed as an architectural surface rather than a decorative frame.

Before refining typography or information hierarchy, the process began with the physical silhouette of the label itself. Different proportions and geometries were tested to create a form that felt monumental, spare and distinctive on the bottle.

Structural studies

The first stage focused on the label as a physical shape. Geometric silhouettes were compared in search of a form that could reference architecture without becoming ornamental or theatrical.

Five geometric label silhouette studies compared before selecting the final shape — Five silhouettes were compared for proportion, contrast and architectural character.

Proportion on the bottle

Once the basic geometry was established, several vertical and compact proportions were tested. The goal was to find a scale that could hold detailed information while preserving a sense of silence and negative space.

Hierarchy and rhythm

The label required a clear hierarchy between the wine name, grape variety, Hebrew and English typography, technical information and origin. Each version tested how information could remain readable without disturbing the overall restraint of the identity.

Hierarchy study with full technical information

Narrower hierarchy study with full technical information

A two-sided system

The final label system separates atmosphere from information. The front remains sparse and ceremonial, while the back carries the technical and regulatory content with the same typographic discipline.

Front label study, sparse and ceremonial

Back label study with technical and regulatory content

The selected structure

The final label combines an architectural silhouette with a considered typographic system. Its pointed geometry gives the bottle a recognisable profile, while the internal composition remains calm, balanced and functional.