Fred Hutch’s brand visuals reflect our mission of advancing cancer research, patient care, and community support with compassion and innovation. This section outlines the many ways to incorporate our brand approved design elements and visual directions into your designs. These adaptable visuals, rooted in the symbolism of our logo, create a cohesive system that unites our organization from our research labs to our clinics.
The examples provided here showcase the breadth of creative possibilities within our visual system while establishing clear boundaries to maintain a strong and consistent brand identity. Please refer to these guidelines to ensure every design reinforces Fred Hutch’s distinctive and unified presence.
For additional questions, contact brand@fredhutch.org.
Ovoids and circles are distinctive elements of the Fred Hutch visual identity. Rooted in the forms of our logomark, they create a clear connection to our brand while adding depth, movement and visual interest to communications.
These shapes are highly flexible. They can serve functional purposes — such as buttons, navigation, and content callouts — or become expressive graphic elements. They may also be used as containers to organize typography and imagery. On FredHutch.org, ovoids are commonly used for buttons, giving calls to action a distinctive and approachable shape.
Ovoids and circles may appear as solid-color or outlined forms. Enlarging or closely cropping these shapes creates more dynamic compositions, introduces movement and provides intentional areas of open space. Always consider their relationship to surrounding content, using spacing thoughtfully to maintain balance and avoid awkward gaps.
Our "supergraphic" design element — previously created using angled ovoids and circles in solid brand colors — has evolved towards a more subtle, refined approach. Rather than applying the supergraphic with solid fills, designers should instead use shapes outlined with a stroke and follow the same methodical approach to scale and consistency as noted in the Ovoids and Circles section above.
Stroked ovoids offer a lighter visual touch, introducing structure, movement, and emphasis without overwhelming the composition. They may be used as expressive graphic elements or as containers for typography and imagery.
Adjust the stroke weight as needed to maintain visual balance at different sizes and across applications. While there is flexibility to explore scale and composition, strokes should always have a clear, purposeful presence and should never appear too thin or delicate.
Color application
Stroked ovoids may use any approved Fred Hutch solid colors or gradients. When applying gradients, use them consistently to maintain cohesion and brand integrity throughout the design.
Stroked Graphic Guidelines
- Do not create a design using the solid-color-filled supergraphic.
- Use stroked graphics sporadically. They do not need to be used in every branded communication.
- When applying stroked graphics, do not cover the entire background of the piece, avoid covering text or other graphics and space out the elements in a way that creates visual interest.
- Avoid overlaying dot at the end of an ovoid.
Linear accents serve as versatile tools for reinforcing the Fred Hutch identity. These elements provide a subtle yet impactful way to introduce structure, guide the eye, and emphasize key information.
Linear accents can be positioned along the edges of a composition or used as underlines to highlight important content. They may be applied using Fred Hutch’s signature sunset gradient or any of the approved brand colors, offering flexibility while maintaining a cohesive look and feel.
This approach is especially effective in designs where the stroked ovoids may feel too prominent or visually heavy. Gradient linear accents add depth and a sense of movement, while solid color applications create clarity and precision. Together, they offer a refined, adaptable system that supports a wide range of design needs while maintaining brand consistency.
In addition to our horizontal and vertical accent bars, the use of angles offer a unique, dynamic way to integrate Fred Hutch’s brand identity. These angles, inspired by the diagonal orientation of our supergraphic, typically span from the bottom left to the top right, adding movement and visual interest to designs. While images can be masked using angles from left to right or right to left, when incorporating graphics, we maintain consistency by using the bottom left to top right angle.
Angled accent bars are versatile: they can serve as bold holding shapes for images or typography, or be strategically placed to highlight brand colors and gradients. This angled approach introduces an energetic rhythm to layouts, offering an alternative to the linearity of horizontal and vertical bars while upholding our cohesive brand identity.
Gradients are a core expressive element of the brand, used to convey warmth, depth, and forward momentum. They help unify communications across digital, print, and environmental applications while reinforcing a sense of care, innovation, and progress. Gradients often bridge brand colors to create visual interest without overwhelming content, allowing the message to remain clear and human.
We use gradients as backgrounds and panels for campaign messaging, cards, and calls to action; in digital interfaces such as headers or feature areas to guide focus; and in environmental and large-scale graphics to create visibility and presence at a distance. Gradients should always use approved brand colors, maintain smooth transitions, and preserve strong contrast for readability and accessibility. They are meant to support the story, not compete with it, and should be applied purposefully and with restraint.
Contact Us
Questions regarding our colors and these guidelines can be directed to brand@fredhutch.org.