New Era

While the logo pictured above is New Era’s complete logo including a tag line, I want to focus on the flag part to the left. While it may not be immediately clear to someone unfamiliar to this logo there is a lower case “n” and an upper-case “E” built into what looks like an American flag. The logo is an outline so it easily adapts to just about any two col0rs.

I find this flag logo to be particularly effective because it works well in conjunction with New Era’s products. New Era is a clothing company but they specialize in baseball caps and other hats. This little flag logo is always embroidered on the left side of the hats. New Era has managed to label their hats outside of the regular tag which is just visible when the hat is taken off. The flag identifies the hat as a New Era cap while not cluttering the hat design with big words or a clunky distracting logo. Pictured below is an example of how the logo appears on their hats.

This technique of putting a simple logo on a hat or piece of clothing is nothing new. Brands like Nike and Reebok do the same thing. However, those brands have instantly recognizable logos while New Era is more of an up-and-coming company. What New Era does differently than those bigger companies is actually include the initials of their company in the logo itself. Nike’s simple swish is easily recognizable and doesn’t need to include the word Nike in it, but New Era is less recognizable and is benefited from including its initials.

Once again, Keep it Simple

It’s almost funny how in nearly any communications scenario (writing, designing, speaking, etc.) the idea of “keeping it simple” rings true.  The Apple logo perfects this concept.  It is a logo that literally any of us could design after only a few weeks in GRA217. With only two shapes, Apple has presented one of the most recognizable and successful logos in the world.  I mean think about it:  Who would have thought that a graphic designer could make us associate a piece of fruit with state-of-the-art technology?

Apple’s design actually has an entire history, beginning with a very busy, old fashioned sketch of Isaac Newton sitting under an apple tree and ending with the icon we know today.  Fun fact:  the “bite” in the apple was originally only there to make sure the image didn’t look like a tomato.  Later, they felt it worked because it could also represent a “byte”… get it?

Before the well known chrome color came to be, Apple dabbled with a rainbow apple.  Though the logo was still successful, and the designer claimed he had no metaphoric meaning in his choice of color, the choice to leave rainbow and go chrome is a great example of how color carries with it a story.  The new silver color has an aura of modernism, speed, the future, chicness, etc. … almost everything you would want in your brand new Apple product.

The Apple logo should give hope to young designers because it proves that you don’t have to have advanced software knowledge to make a successful logo. After all, if Apple wanted a complex design, they of all companies would have had the tech-savvy employees to execute it.  Instead, they went with simple.  Imagine if the company had stuck with its original design…

You might still be using a Gateway…

“Think About…” Campaign for SAKS

One logo that has come up in class multiple times is the Saks Fifth Avenue logo. While doing research on the design company that created the logo (Pentagram) I found information about the “Think About…” promotional campaign for Saks that has an awesome logo to go along with it.

The “Think About…” campaign was created because Saks’ usual promotional tagline, “Want it!”, was deemed “too aggressive” of a declaration considering today’s poor economy, according to Terron Schaefer, Saks’ group senior vice president for marketing and creative. To go along with the new campaign, which has been a great success for Saks, Pentagram designers Michael Bierut and Jennifer Kinon created a smart and innovative logo. The logo has each white letter of  the tagline “Think About” in black boxes, which has visual gestalt with the black and white squares of the Saks Fifth Avenue store logo. The design is very modern and incorporates sans serif type with clean straight lines in a grid-like style, making the logo have wonderful visual hierarchy. Each letter of the tagline is also represent by its own catalog, which features the letter on the cover and simple black and white illustrations of items inside each specific catalog like shoes (on the “B” catalog, “Think About…Banning Boredom”) or bowties (on the “T” catalog, “Think About… Transcending the Token Tie”).

I think the logo works well for the company’s campaign. The modern type and choice of classic colors make the logo really visually pleasing. I especially like that visual hierarchy and think that the way white spaced is used is very effective. Overall think that the logo is very successful. For a high end retailer like Saks, it is a good design because it is simple, sophisticated, and chic.

New York Yankees:Most famous sports logo in the world

The logo of the New York Yankees is one of the most famous sports logos in the world. In almost every country, people can be seen wearing the Yankees’ logo, whether it is on hats, shirts, or other apparel. The interlocking NY was first designed in 1877 by Louis B. Tiffany to commemorate NYPD officer John McDowell, who was the first NYPD officer to die in the line of duty. It was adopted by the Yankees when the team was founded in 1903, when they were still the Highlanders. The logo first appeared on jerseys in 1909, and has stayed ever since.

The logo is very classic, with a very old fashioned serif typeface that is very reminiscent of the time period in which it was created. The navy blue is an obvious choice for the logo, as it is the official color of the Yankees. It can also be seen in white during gameday on the Yankees’ hats. The interlocking of the N and the Y are really what make the logo. If the letters were seperate, the logo would not be as iconic; it would be very boring and not at all unique. However, the interlocking of the N and the Y creates a logo that fits everything that the Yankees represent: class, dignity, and winning the right way. The logo is simple, classic, and navy, which is a color normally seen with class. It is a perfect logo for the Yankees, as it can represents them well and can be used universally on apparel, equipment, billboards, etc. all over the world.

Envy, fierceness, and vitality

Personally I am not a big fan of energy drinks but I think that the Monster logo is true to the brand and is very creative.  The first thing that pops out of this logo is the green visual and green text.  Green and black were great bold colors, the neon green was also a good choice because green does signify vitality and envy.  These two connotations are very significant to the brand because they need to differentiate from all of the other energy drinks.

Next I thought that the green rip/claw marks were great to identify with the title.  Often a monster is thought of as a cartoon image of big-foot of something else very cliché.  These tear marks on the other hand portray the right image of fierceness and power without the childish quality that could have easily become attached to the Monster brand.

Lastly I think that the white Monster text is very unique and yet fitting.  The font is very rough and asymmetrical, it reminds me of sticks pushed together or a primitive writing style which is mysterious and cool.  The ‘o’ is very interesting and reminds me of an eye as if the ‘monster’ is staring back at you.  This logo seems like it was pretty simple to create but the concept is really strong.

O

A presidential campaign is one of the last places you would think of when asked for a successful logo, and yet, here it is:

Barack Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign logo: creative, unique, and patriotic.

Obama, or maybe his promotional team/creative group/whoever designed the logo, was smart in their choice of colors. Red, white, and blue screams patriotic and that is exactly what a presidential logo should do. Not sure what McCain was thinking when he picked his logo.

There is lots of symbolism in the logo that is well designed. The red and white stripes not only represent the stripes on our nation’s flag, but are aligned in a way that makes them appear to be a field, or the plains that our ancestors slaved over to harvest their crops and survive. Today those same plains are still used to support the nation’s citizens.

The white space in the middle represents a rising sun on the horizon, which insinuates a new day and new possibilities with a new president. The blue frames the sky and also refers back to the third color on our American flag.

The shape of the logo is a simple circle that also forms an “O” for Obama.

I like that the blue is not the dark blue of the flag and instead a lighter, fresher blue that resembles a clear sky. The gradient, or the way the colors fade from bright edges into a lighter inside also adds to the sunrise effect. I really like the clean lines of the design- ultimately, it consists of a bunch of carefully curved lines. The effect is a strong statement of Obama’s mission of a new future with his election into the White House. One of my favorite parts is the fact that no text is actually used. Obama was able to claim one letter and create a design that represents his entire platform. From a design standpoint, he was the clear winner in this race.

Rachael Grannell’s poster

The New “User-Friendly” Pepsi

Pepsi Cola. Pepski. The Anti-Coke. PEPSI! Whatever you call it, Pepsi has branded itself as the soda choice of this generation. Their newest design, which features a very drastic change in the logos font and type still manages to hold true to the company’s brand.

The first thing signifying this brand is its indistinguishable colors. Red. White. Blue. Navy. These colors are as American as the small town PepsiCo, Inc. is located in, Purchase, N.Y. Using these colors was an obvious choice to appeal to Americans. The red and blue colors are very bold, attractive, and vibrant, with the clean white to accent them nicely.

The logo itself has been revamped since the old days of Pepsi (see bottom.) it’s asymmetry in the colors within it goes against what the logo used to look like. It also adds visual gestalt in its asymmetry that creates a very striking logo. The simplicity of it, even with the radical change, shows that simplicity in logos is often the most powerful. On a humorous note, doesn’t this look eerily familiar to the Obama campaign logo? I wonder who had it first…

The type of this is something else that I believe differentiates it from others.The ‘e’ in it works so simple … I LOVE IT! The cross bar in it has the small curve matching the curve in the logo that ties the two together perfectly. The two ‘p’s are also perfectly round in their counters to match the logo.

The use of lowercase letters slightly amuses me to be honest. Now that it is all lowercase instead of all caps, it presents itself as more welcoming. They obviously took a hint from Walmart’s new logo to look more inviting and homely, while still maintaining the contemporary edge (granted, Walmart’s logo does have a big ‘W’ but get over it!)

With Pepsi well into their “refresh everything” campaign, it’s obvious their company is maintaining its mission to appeal to the younger generation, who are active in wanting change for the better NOW. Oddly enough, I’m sure none of these grants are going to combating obesity, in which soda has been linked as a major cause of. Strange. But that’s besides the point! They’re doing good for society, appealing to young generations, and gaining market share slowly but surely.

Oddly enough, I haven’t drank soda for the past five years. Why am I even talking about this. Eh, whatever! It’s only a matter of time before Obam … I mean, Pepsi has equal market share to Coca-Cola anyway!

Love, RED and…DMB what are you thinking?

I LOVE this poster! This analogous color scheme works perfectly for the promotion of the Cirque Du Soleil show, themed around songs from The Beatles.

The colors impact the bold and vivid design. Because this poster uses warm colors it easily grabs the viewer’s attention. The saturation and value are used to focus the viewer’s attention to the center of the poster.

I think it was very creative to make a tie dye effect within the figures. It ties in the color scheme very nicely.

To create distinction the text is a cool color in bold type. This color scheme is effective,bright and completely appropriate for the event.

The second poster uses color and white space very well. At first glance it appears that this poster only contains a red hue. Upon closer inspection you can see that a yellow-orange hue has less value and fades into a red hue that becomes more saturated from the right to the left of the poster.

The black “white space” separates text and graphics very effectively. While this poster is very busy in terms of graphics the use of color makes it visually appealing. I think this is a very effective poster that stimulates excitement with the use of warm colors.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Third poster (failure)

I cannot look at this poster too long without getting a headache. First of all, the graphics are disgusting. Fish are in no way appealing in or out of the water.

There is no color scheme and the colors simply do not work well together. The distorted text in random colors make it very hard to read. There are too many highly saturated colors competing for attention.

I simply don’t understand.   What is the point of this poster?

The Adventures of Bobby Ray: Logo Edition

For a successful logo, I chose B.o.B‘s logo for his album, The Adventures of Bobby Ray. I like the simple yellow color used for this logo. I think the design is kind of busy, with all the letters dragging out and I think picking a simple color was an easy way to balance it out.  I think yellow was also a good choice to help appeal to many different audiences for B.o.B. Yellow is typically a color associated with females so maybe by using this color, more women will be attracted to his music.

I liked the layout of this logo a lot. It seems to have a 3D effect on the screen. The words on the right seem to be popping out of the screen, almost like they are rearing to go on an adventure.  I also really like the way the letters are dragging behind the rest of the word, signaling the speed. It’s almost as if the logo is in motion. I like the way the periods in B.o.B cut into the letter O itself and aren’t separated out creating extra white space in the design. I like the way the letters get smaller and the words get smaller, creating the upside down pyramid shape that is visually appealing to the eye.