Designing for the Future – Olympic Logos
January 3, 2011 | Posted in Graphic Design
Creating a logo and accompanying brand identity can be a big task for even the best designers. Creating one for an event that is years in the future can be even more difficult.
Every year there are trends in logo design that are rarely seen in previous years. 2009, for example, featured a number of logos using psychedelic backgrounds, origami, pictograms and a few other main trends as listed in Logo Orange’s article, Logo Design & Branding Trends 2009.
It’s easy to look back and list all of the trends from the year, but looking forward and trying to predict them is nearly impossible. Olympic logo designers have no choice. Logos for these events are created approximately five years in advance and can only hope to be just as modern when the games begin. Let’s take a look at four of the most recent Olympic logo designs.
Vancouver 2010
Unveiled – April 23, 2005
Vancouver’s Olympic logo fits in well with trends showcased in 2005. Its use of simple shapes to create a well-known Canadian mark is very well executed. Its simplicity and message carried the logo well throughout the 2010 games as it was broadcast across millions of televisions around the world.
Placing this logo beside those designed in 2010 does not make it feel out of place in the slightest. Rivera Design Group did an excellent job with this logo and the accompanying marketing materials even five years before Vancouver hit the global spotlight.
Other Notable Logos of 2005
London 2012
Unveiled – June 4, 2007
London’s 2012 logo has caused some of the biggest uproar about a logo in recent history. Having a £400,000 price tag surely did not help. David Airey, popular designer and blogger, wrote a brief article titled, London 2012 Olympics logo disaster that links to a number of other articles voicing a similar concern. David’s article also built up nearly 250 comments with the majority agreeing the logo must be some sort of joke.
The official Olympic website claims:
“It feels young in spirit. Full of confidence, certainty and opportunity. Not afraid to shake things up, to challenge the accepted. To change things.”
The logo definitely has a lot of confidence and does not shy away from trying to shake things up, but it is evident that the attempt to change things missed the mark. While it is true “bad” advertising can be used on purpose to generate brand awareness, an identity of this magnitude should not follow what I can only assume Pepsi did with its recent logo redesign. Beside others designed in 2007 and those around today, the London 2012 logo feels out of place.
On the other hand, this is the first time that the Olympic and Paralympic logos will be part of the same brand. This is a feature that is missing in past events and is one area that the committee can be proud of.
Other Notable Logos of 2007
Sochi 2014
Unveiled – December 1, 2009
Sochi came out with a very plain logo compared to past designs. Maybe they played it safe to avoid the backlash witnessed two years before surrounding the London mark, or perhaps they believe something so simple will stand the test of time better than a more elaborate design.
This is the first Olympic logo to form a web address with its reasoning being that Sochi “is a 21st Century brand for a digital generation” (sochi2014.com). It is a bold move that places all of its focus on the wordmark instead of any graphical icons. The secondary elements are “Snow Crystals,” which highlight a nicely designed website and other marketing materials.
A leaked Sochi logo was released about a week before the chosen logo was announced in Moscow. It features the five Olympic colours in a circle of flames (or feathers?) and is quite the opposite of the chosen design. Those that commented on the fake release seem to really enjoy the Firefox-like design and are quite disappointed that it was not chosen. I believe the current logo better reflects Russia as a nation and gives the whole feel of the games a much more winter-like feel.
The standalone logo is fairly dull and unexciting, but is offset nicely across other media with the appearance of the “Snow Crystals.” This design proves that even if the logo is not over the top, its application can help define it. Well done, Sochi.
Other Notable Logos of 2009
Rio 2016
Unveiled – December 31, 2010
Just as Vancouver’s 2010 logo referenced a truly unique Canadian object, Rio’s 2016 logo mimics the Pão de Açucar (“Sugarloaf”) mountain. Brand New, a blog that follows new and redesigned logos across a variety of industries, covers Rio’s logo very well and includes a few videos (unfortunately some are not in English).
The vibrant use of colour draws comparison to the recent South Africa 2010 World Cup – a trend very apparent throughout 2010. This is the first Olympic logo that has had no harsh backlash in a few years, although it has only been a few days so I’m sure something will come out soon. It certainly fits current trends, but only time will tell if it is still relevant come 2016.
Other Notable Logos of 2010
Final Thoughts
While it is impossible to predict the future, Olympic logo designers have to try and create something that will remain unique half a decade down the road when the games are being held. All designers try to design for the future as well as the present, but how many of them are actually successful? Look at how many times the Pepsi logo has changed compared to the (relatively) unchanged Coke wordmark in Brand New’s comparison of the brands.
If you are familiar with logo trends farther back than 2005, take a look at Webdesigner Depot’s list of the past 39 Olympic Logos and try to see how closely they match other trends from those years.
2 appreciated comments
Olympic logo design is definitely a tough job, but considering the amount of time and money that goes into them outcomes like London 2012 just shouldn’t happen. I like the Rio logo, interesting to see if it still looks cool when I look at it again in 2016. :-)
Twitter: cre8ivecommando
Of all the logo design jobs out there, it definitely has to be the toughest. No matter what they come out with there is going to be some opposition, and they can only be hopeful that the design can withstand all of the criticism for the next five years.