Benjamin Lee
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Contact
I’m a designer currently based in Singapore, with experience in crafting design solutions for clients across the mediums of digital, print, and art direction. My passion lies in developing unique solutions that delight and inform through design.
Office of the Mufti
A bridge to an inclusive Muslim life
Scope
Brand Identity, Art Direction, Print, Digital, Motion
Year
2023
Completed at
Practice Theory
Office of the Mufti (OOM) is a companion to the Muslim community’s religious life and a representative of Singaporean Muslims within the government and beyond. Helping Muslims cultivate a thriving religious life within a diverse, secular Singapore has always been the cornerstone of their mission. However, building upon this momentum has proven challenging, as they navigate implicit obstacles and assumptions while balancing their precarious position. As the community sought to evolve amidst the challenges of negotiating religious life within a diverse, secular Singapore, OOM recognised the need for a more pertinent communication strategy that reflected their commitment to relevance while upholding core Islamic principles.
To grow OOM’s reach, they had to grow their range. Through extensive research and interviews with diverse practicing Muslims, we identified a significant segment of the community—the "broad middle"—who were seeking guidance to reconcile their faith with the complexities of modern life. To reach this segment, OOM needed to establish a welcoming and inclusive presence from the first encounter. We envisioned the organisation as a bridge between seemingly opposing values: openness and tradition, relatability and rigour, authenticity and authority. By creating a space where individuals could come as they are and receive guidance, OOM could build trust and foster a sense of belonging while standing firm. This led us to their new brand territory as a host, creating and holding space to bring the community together through connection, conversation, and counsel.
A Place of Gathering
We extended this idea by abstracting the shape of a table, visually exploring a demarcated space that can be interpreted in a myriad of ways. This rectangular modular frame houses copy and visuals that incorporated elements of the mihrab, the architectural and symbolic focal point of mosques, to create a meaningful yet flexible framing device. To reinforce OOM's commitment to trust and community, we also developed a seal of trust to complement their new logo. The long, extending strokes of the logo’s Arabic-inspired calligraphy symbolised the interconnectedness of the community and the organisation's role in bridging the gap between individuals. Working closely with local photographer Nabil Nazri, their refreshed imagery also underscored their human-centric values, focusing on individuals who are natural, vibrant, warm, and real, and religious life as portrayed through photography of spaces, prayer, and abstract representations to encompass the spectrum of ways to practice Islam.