Design Army Takes Over Downtown DC

Multiple Applied Arts Design Awards–winning Washington, DC–based agency Design Army has launched a large-scale campaign for CityCenterDC, transforming the city’s largest fashion district into a bold, immersive creative experience—andreimagining the visual identity of the nation’s capital.

Created for CityCenterDC—the city’s largest fashion district—the bold, experimental installation is anything but conventional DC. Gone is the capital’s familiar monochromatic, politically serious aesthetic. In its place, Design Army reimagines Washington as a vibrant creative playground, brought to life through fantastical, wall-to-ceiling, three-panel mural collages. The immersive installation weaves together the city’s creative, fashion, culinary, architectural, and historical worlds into a surreal, celebratory visual landscape.

Wonderfully weird, joyful, and explosively colourful, the public artwork blends Renaissance-inspired imagery (drawn from the Smithsonian’s collections) with sci-fi, fashion, the National Zoo’s pandas, cherry blossoms, and DC’s most iconic monuments and landmarks—forming a surrealist collage that feels both playful and culturally rooted.

The campaign extends into a scroll-stopping, delightfully unconventional social rollout, featuring photography by Dean Alexander spotlighting some of Washington’s most influential voices in fashion, art, and design.

Long recognized as creative leaders in embracing AI technology, Design Army brings a distinctly future-forward sensibility to the project. Yet the installation remains deeply human—thoughtfully hand-crafted and hand-touched—balancing technological innovation with artistic intention to create a re-envisioned, unexpected, and distinctly imaginative portrait of DC.

CREDITS
Client: CITYCENTERDC
Managing Director: Timothy R. Lowery
Director Mixed-Use Marketing and Brand Strategy: Melissa King

Design Army
Co-Founder & Chief Creative Officer: Pum Lefebure 
Account Director: Jake Lefebure
Creative Director: Heloise Condroyer
Senior Designer: Jason Chae
Social Media: Molly Stotts, Richard Liu

PHOTOGRAPHY
Director/Photographer: Dean Alexander 
1st AD/Producer: Erin Winebrenner

From our perspective, Design Army’s CityCenterDC campaign is creativity at its boldest—fearless, imaginative, and deeply human. It doesn’t just transform public space; it redefines what design can do in the city, culture, and community.