Color as Character

Color is one of the most emotive and memorable elements in visual communication. It shapes perception, sparks memory, and defines atmosphere. In branding, color becomes recognition, recall, ownership.

In this talk, I’ll explore how color has shaped me as a designer—from early childhood fascinations to formative years in art school and the influences that have stayed with me throughout my career. I’ll touch on how graphic design from the 1950s through the 1980s has informed my instincts around color, sometimes consciously, often subconsciously.

Drawing from the Letterform Archive’s rich typographic legacy, I’ll connect historic references to contemporary brand identity projects from Manual, showing how past ideas echo through present-day work. I’ll share how hue, saturation, contrast, and palette-building play a central role in the way we create brands—and why color remains one of the most powerful tools we have as designers.

Tom Crabtree is a British-American designer and the Founder and Executive Creative Director of Manual, an independent design studio based in San Francisco and Amsterdam. Manual partners with forward-thinking companies and cultural institutions to create brand identities that balance clarity, craft, and imagination across strategy, design, and digital experience.

Before starting Manual, Tom worked in London and at Apple in California. He brings more than two decades of experience across culture, technology, and the ideas reshaping our world. Under his leadership, Manual has launched, evolved, and shaped experiences for brands including the Eames Institute, the Obama Foundation, Waymo, Fort Point Beer Co., YBCA, and Strava.

Tom also contributes to the design community as a speaker, juror, and writer, sharing his perspective through conferences, podcasts, and publications.