Think (and design) London

After the London 2012 logo came out, I've been increasingly skeptical of any designs produced to advertise the city of London. Johnson Banks, a London firm specializing in strategic identity and branding, designed this tourism logo for Think London, London's "official foreign direct investment agency," "a non-for-profit private-public partnership" that helps connect businesses to the city. Johnson Banks explains their rationale for the design: "Think London’s job is to sell the city as a location to the world’s businesses. ‘Forget Paris, Berlin, Beijing, set up in London instead’ is their pitch. So how do you distill all that London has to offer into 1 symbol? Well, you don’t. You use 45. We twisted the famous skyline 180 degrees into a reflection and made a new skyline out of all the other factors that would help you choose the city." I like the concept behind the logo, but not so much the execution. The reflection shows the real skyline and the upper skyline has new symbols to represent the modern city, but the mark is incredibly busy, and definitely not reducible. It would just look like a blue blob. The video advertisement that accompanies the logo makes me like the logo a bit more, but that might just be because the logo already has so many elements that it's pretty easy to translate to another medium. Still, the video was way too long and visually complex-- too much messaging isn't the only thing that leaves the viewer overwhelmed with these designs.

Detail:

Looks So Good You Want to Taste It

Designs by Paul Torres: Identity with great use of highlights to create the effect of volume. An applaudable effort to really make chocolate look like chocolate. Nicely tracked type to complement. Accompanied by Identity, illustration, and packaging for "Daddy's Mixes" pancake brand, sold at church functions and fundraisers. "The logo incorporates the founder's likeness in a playful manner." The eyes are a bit freaky, and I question the size of the logo on the front. Dare I say "Make it bigger"?

OLIN Gets an Update

Designers at Pentagram under Abbott Miller recently finished redesigning a new identity for OLIN, a landscape architecture/urban design/planning firm based in Philadelphia. From Pentagram's website: "OLIN is the recipient of the 2008 Cooper-Hewitt National Design Award for Landscape Design and is internationally recognized for creating spaces that promote social interaction as well as for emphasizing environmental, economic and social sustainability in their work. The firm was previously known as Olin Partnership, and the identity and website coincide with the introduction of the abbreviated name... The simplicity of the name and mark are counterbalanced by vibrant color options and flexible logo compositions that allow for a customizable identity. The OLIN website extends the identity into a navigable experience that encourages users to view the firm’s work through a series of different lenses. The result is an intuitive environment that complements the firm’s deep understanding of public space." I couldn't have said it any better. It's a nice use of the extremely circular O in Gotham Black that we know pretty well by now. The widespread application of color and use of scale make the identity more than just a mark--it becomes a system by which the firm can communicate visually to consumers. And any doubts that I have about this designs static nature are put to rest by the interactive features on OLIN's website.

New wordmark:
Identity repeated on the website:

Project view in the new OLIN website:

Letterhead:

Keetra Dean Dixon Cordially Invites You...

Some intricate and inspiring typography from a small ongoing series of cordial invitations.

Super Bowl Logos

A online New York Times multimedia section shows the evolution of the Super Bowl logos since the Super Bowl's inception. The official logo actually featured no football until Super Bowl 26, no shield traditional to the league until Super Bowl 34, and no hint to the existence of 2 conferences until Super Bowl 40 (excluding the first game, which wasn't called a Super Bowl). Are these just logos or are they something more? While I believe that the logos surely aim to evoke the tradition of the game and I think that it's nice to show the evolution of graphic design in the U.S., I find it hard to believe that fans remember or care how the logos change from game to game, year to year, despite duplication on beer cans, jerseys, hats, and other memorabilia.

Last week, the New York Times called professional and amateur designers for proposals for alternative Super Bowl logos. The "best ones," including an entry from Pentagram, were published later in the week on the Fifth Down blog. I think the second one below is hilarious -- it definitely captures why so many Americans enjoy watching the Super Bowl.

"A departure from the roman numerals primarily featured in past Super Bowl logos, a bold symbol celebrates the coming together of the champions of the A.F.C. and N.F.C. Their two overlapping helmets, in the N.F.L.'s colors, embed a football within the center of the design. The ball rests on the 50-yard line, creating the game's iconic trophy." -- Michael Gericke, Don Bilodeau and Jed Skillins, Pentagram

"Since Super Bowl Sunday is the second largest U.S. food consumption day, following Thanksgiving, I propose to mark this unofficial second (or for some people first) national holiday with the elements that any self-respecting football fan or American cannot go without: pizza, burgers and chicken wings. So this logo is a celebration, an ode to the fan and America's favorite pastime. The only graphic requirement is to design each food item in the shape of a football." -- Julia Hoffmann, New York

Jesse Kirsch

Jesse Kirsch is a graphic designer now working in New York City. He graduated from the School of Visual Arts and specializes in packaging. Here is some of his work; he shows great use of illustrative and sans serif typography and clean color shapes.

Gatorade or G?

Instead of a nice shower of Gatorade after the big game, victories will now no longer be complete without a "bath of G." Gatorade has renamed its product an abridged "G" and created new bottles and packaging to match. The name Gatorade is of secondary importance on the label. Why the change? While shortened "G" certainly matches the energetic and awe-inspiring qualities of the lightning bolt logo, how can a company simply throw out the brand recognition that's been building since the product's invention in 1965? Doesn't this new campaign go entirely against previous advertising campaigns where the company emphasized the product's strong heritage rooted in athletics? From an article in the Palm Beach Post: "The 'G' marketing campaign is the brainchild of Sarah Robb O'Hagan, who was named the company's chief marketing officer in June. In a release, Gatorade Co. said it is 'redesigning everything from the sidelines to the shelf to appeal to a broader range of athletes and active people,' while using 'bold new packaging.' It is part of a larger initiative by Gatorade's parent company, PepsiCo, to redesign its core brands." In honor of Super Bowl XLIII, Gatorade produced commemorative "Champs" G bottles for the winning team. Since the Steelers won, only the Steelers' version will be released. The bottles were supposedly to appear on the field and in the locker rom yesterday, with the new "G" packaging. In 2008, Gatorade honored the New York Giants with a commemorative bottle label as well (limited to 2,520 and sold on Gatorade.com). This year, only 45 limited edition bottles will be made, and they will not be available to the public. Will consumers ever refer to the product simply as "G," or will we forever call the classic neon yellow drink "Gatorade"?