Cascadia Poetics LAB
Client: Cascadia Poetics LAB, Paul E. Nelson, Seattle, WA
Scope: Brand identity design, website design and development, information architecture, content migration, ongoing updates and expansion
Role: Design, UX, brand development, front-end implementation, content systems planning
Platform: WordPress
Timeline: June 2021 – Present (ongoing)
Context: Cascadia Poetics LAB (CPL) serves as the central platform for a long-running poetry organization dedicated to bioregional awareness, community dialogue, and literary archives. Over time, CPL expanded to include multiple public-facing programs and initiatives—including Poetry Postcard Fest, Cascadia Poetry Festival, The Cascadian Prophets podcast, and publishing initiatives through Watershed Press—each with distinct audiences and content needs.
The project evolved from a single, difficult-to-navigate site into a unified digital ecosystem designed to support long-term growth, archival depth, and ongoing programming.
The Challenge: The original website lacked clear organization and visual coherence, making it difficult for users to navigate extensive content including interviews, essays, workshops, events, and publications. As the organization grew, the site needed to support multiple sub-brands while remaining manageable for a small team and preserving the integrity of a large historical archive.
The Solution: The site was re-architected and redesigned to function as a central hub for Cascadia Poetics LAB while supporting multiple programmatic identities within a shared WordPress environment. A cohesive brand system, modular page templates, and scalable content structures were developed to improve usability, maintainability, and long-term flexibility.
Key design decisions included
Unified brand identity
Developed a distinctive visual system anchored by a Cascadia Bioregion logo mark, custom typography, and an expanded color palette adaptable across programs, events, and campaigns.
Scalable information architecture
Reorganized site navigation and content hierarchy to support deep archives (interviews, essays, workshops) while maintaining clarity for new visitors.
Shared infrastructure, distinct identities
Consolidated multiple sub-brands into a single WordPress environment with shared global styles and templates, allowing centralized management while preserving each program’s independent public presence.
Reusable content templates
Built flexible templates for workshops, interviews, books, and editorial content to streamline publishing and ensure consistency over time.
Integrated engagement tools
Implemented Mailchimp newsletter subscriptions with RSS automation and Funraise donation functionality to support outreach and fundraising.
The Result: Cascadia Poetics LAB now operates on a unified, scalable digital infrastructure that supports multiple programs, archives, and audiences from a single platform. The redesigned system improves long-term maintainability, clarifies relationships between initiatives, and provides a stable foundation for ongoing programming, publishing, and community engagement.
What This Project Demonstrates: This project demonstrates the ability to design and maintain complex, multi-program cultural platforms—balancing brand identity, archival scale, and day-to-day usability. It highlights strengths in systems thinking, long-term content planning, and building flexible digital infrastructure that supports evolving organization needs without sacrificing clarity or cohesion.
