The History of Logo Design

The EVOLUTION of.."LOGO"

A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE LOGO



Days of yor - 1800:

Logo Habilis -

Rising up above non-branded companies in the early days of yore. The earliest logos were nothing more than a distinctive mark, symbol or literal brand to mark who the maker of the prodcut was.



1800-1900:

Logo Erectus-

Complex logos mutating in all shapes and sizes. In the Victorian era the logo started to become more complex, and the beginnings of the first brands were established by business owners like John Cadbury (although a logo rarely had anything similar from one to the next apart from the company name).



1900-1930:

Logo Antecessor-

The ancestor of the modern logo. Trademarking begins in earnest. It was in the early 1900s that the ancestors of the modern logo were born, and it is during this time that you start to see logos and Corporate identities being trademarked for the first time.



1930-1980:

Logo

Rhodesiensis-

Strong ideas, carving out the brand. The graphic design giants like Paul Rand, Milton Glaser and Alan Fletcher revolutionised the art of logo design and developed the principles of simplicity that most designers still work by.



1980 - present day:

Logo Sapiens-

Modern day logos of the Brand Era.

The modern day logo is simple, flexible, adaptable to any kind of media and truly built to last for their brand (until the next step in evolution that is).



Specimens taken from

THE WILD



McDonalds

According to a recent survey the golden arches of the McDonalds logo are more widely recognised than the Christian Cross. Having said that there may be few people out there who pray to the Big Mac.



1948-1953

1953-1962

1962-1970

1970-2000

2000-2010

Present Day



Starbucks

The famous figure on the Starbucks logo is actually a Greek Mythological creature called a siren. According to the tales the Siren would lure ships towards it with its beautiful singing voice before making them crash against the rocks below. Apparently Starbucks wanted their customers to be as lured by their drinks as sailers were to the sirens - ooh arr!



1971

1987

1992

Present Day



Mercedes

The 3 points on the Mercedes triangle were designed to symbolise the company's domination of land, Sea and Air.



1902

1909

1916

1926

2008

Present Day



Nike

The Nike 'Swoosh' was originally intended to look like one of the wings of the Greek Goddess of Victory, Nike.



1971

1978

1985

Present Day



Ford

In 1966 Henry Ford II asked a designer (Paul Rand, no less) to change the Ford logo but he changed his mind at the last minute to stick with the ford logo the one which we still know in essence today.



1903

1912

1957

1976

Present Day



Firefox

Originally Firefox planned to use a red panda as their logo (which is where the nickname firefox comes from), but the designers didn't think that the imagery was quite right for the brand so they changed it to the fox you see today.



2002-2004

2004

2004-2009

Present day



Taken from Charles 'British Design' Expertswin's



The theory of Logolution*

*Sadly not a real publication. The EVOLUTION of.. "LOGO' A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE LOGO Days of yore - 1800: Logo Habilis – B. Rising up above non-branded companies in the early days of yore. The earliest logos were nothing more than a distinctive mark, symbol or 1800-1900: Logo Erectus – literal brand to mark who the maker of the product Complex logos mutating in all shapes and sizes. In the Victorian era the logo started to become more complex, and the beginnings of the first was. 1900- 1930: Logo Antecessor - brands were established by business owners The ancestor of the modern like John Cadbury (although a logo rarely had anything similar from one to logo. Trademarking begins in earnest. It was in the early 1900s that the ancestors of the modern the next apart from the company name). logo were born, and it is during this time that you start to see logos and Corporate Identities being Ford trademarked for the first time. 1930-1980: Logo Rhodesiensis - Strong ideas, carving out the brand. The graphic design giants like Paul Rand, 1980 - present day: Logo Sapiens - Milton Glaser and Alan Fletcher revolutionised the art of logo design and developed the principles of simplicity that most designers still work by. Modern day logos of the Brand Era. The modern day logo is simple, flexible, adaptable to any kind of media and truly built to last for their brand (until the next step in evolution that is). Specimens taken from THE WILD McDonalds According to a recent survey the golden arches of the McDonalds logo are more widely recognised than the Christian Cross. Having said that there may be few people out there who pray to the Big Mac. Mc Donals AA M'DONALOS HAMBURGERS McDonalds McDonald's BUYER BY THE BAG COAST TO COAST i'mlovin' it 1948 - 1953 1953 - 1962 1962 - 1970 1970 - 2000 2000 - 2010 resent Day Starbucks The famous figure on the Starbucks logo is actually a Greek Mythological creature called a siren. According to the tales the Siren would lure ships towards it with its beautiful singing voice before making them crash against the rocks below. Apparently Starbucks wanted their customers to be as lured by their drinks as sailors were to the sirens – ooh arr! STARBUCKS STAR OFFEE. COFFEE COFFEE TEA 1971 1987 1992 asent Day Mercedes The 3 points on the Mercedes triangle were designed to symbolise the company's domination of Land, Sea and Air. ME RCEDES MERCEDES ERCEDEN Mercedes-Benz BEN 1902 1909 1916 1926 2008 esent D Nike The Nike 'Swoosh' was originally intended to look like one of the wings of the Greek Goddess of Victory, Nike. (nike NIKE 1971 1978 1985 resent Da Ford In 1966 Henry Ford II asked a designer (Paul Rand, no less) to change the ford logo but he changed his mind at the last minute to stick with the ford logo the one which we still know in essence today. Ford Ford Ford Ford TORD MOTOR Co. DETROIT. 1903 1912 1957 1976 Present Day Firefox Originally Firefox planned to use a red panda as their logo (which is where the nickname firefox comes from), but the designers didn't think that the imagery was quite right for the brand so they changed it to the fox you see today. 2002 - 2004 2004 2004 - 2009 esent Da Taken from Charles “British Design' Expertswin's The theory of Logoution“ *Sadly not a real publication. This nifty infographic was researched, written and designed by the British Design Experts team. Sources Caleb Bradham, 'The History of Pepsi Cola', About. Com, http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blpepsi.htm Steve M., 'So, who is the Siren?' Starbucks.com, http://www.starbucks.com/blog/so-who-is-the-siren Jane McGrath, 'How McDonald's Works', HowStuffWorks, http://www.howstuffworks.com/mcdonalds.htm Phil Patton, 'The Ford Logo That Almost Was', The New York Times Online, http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/01/21/the-ford-logo-that- almost-was/ Dan Redding, 'The Evolution of The Logo', Smashing Magazing, http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2010/07/06/the-evolution-of-the- logo/ Ivan Raszl, 'Interview with Rob Janoff, designer of the Apple logo', CreativeBits, http://creativebits.org/interview/interview_rob_-janoff_designer_apple_lo go 'Nike Logo', Logo Blog, http: //www.logoblog.org/nike_logo. php 'Mercedes Explain Meaning of Three-Pointed Star Logo Video, Autoevolution, http://www.autoevolution.com/news/mercedes-explains-meaning-of- three-pointed-star-logo-video-39907. html 'History of the FireFox logo' I love logo design, http://www.etiziano.com/I love logo_design/history_of_the refox logo. html SPICES UCKS