The yin yang symbol — order and chaos

I was watching YouTube the other day — one of Jordan Peterson’s talks, Who Dares Say He Believes in God. Afterward, as YouTube does, it led me to a related video showing one of his older university lectures where he talked about the meaning behind the yin yang symbol. It’s a symbol I’ve seen throughout my life but I’ve never heard it explained with...

Mar 2020

Reimagining the Swan Vestas logo

This logo by Kent-based graphic designer John Vingoe picked up a Chip in the 2019 Chip Shop Awards (the 2020 submission deadline is 12th March). It was part of a personal project to reimagine existing brands through their logos and packaging — in this case a redesign of the classic Swan Vestas logo. Original Swan Vestas matchbox designSwan Vestas...

Feb 2020

Goodyear’s iconic Wingfoot

The responsibility for the adoption of the Wingfoot symbol, now widely known around the world, rests to a great extent with Frank Seiberling, the founder and for many years president of The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company. In the old Seiberling home in Akron, Ohio, there stood a statue of Mercury, the Roman god (known to Greeks as Hermes). The...

Jan 2020

Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas

The 25-foot-high, internally lit Las Vegas sign was designed by the late commercial artist Betty Willis (pictured below in 1998). Photo via Las Vegas News Bureau (LVNB)Betty started designing neon signs in the 1950s for Thomas Young’s YESCO and other sign makers. In 1952 she moved to Western Neon, a small local outfit, where, in 1959, salesman Ted...

Sep 2019

The Logo Design Idea Book

Written by Steven Heller and Gail Anderson, The Logo Design Idea Book features 50 logos as examples of good ideas in the service of representation, reputation, and identification. Each logo is given a double-page spread, images on one side, text on the other. Many of the designs are well known, for brands such as LEGO, Amazon, FedEx, and IBM, while...

Aug 2019

Sushi Daily

Founded by Kelly Choi, Sushi Daily makes handmade sushi at counters in more than 700 supermarkets including Waitrose in the UK and Carrefour in France. London-based brand design studio Without initially won a pitch to develop the identity for Sushi Daily’s first dedicated “grab & go” store on London’s New Oxford Street, but the work developed into...

May 2019

Architectural Logos, from Counter-Print

Architectural Logos contains a selection of logos, trademarks, and symbols from around the world that are formed from architectural elements such as houses, buildings, windows, stairs, and doors, etc. The book is a collection of work from some of the most talented designers and studios around the world including Anagrama, Bond Creative Agency, Civilization,...

Apr 2019

The Extinction symbol

Counterculture from the late 1950s was identified by the peace symbol. The rave generation of the 80s had the smiley logo. Now we see the movement against climate breakdown being represented by the extinction symbol, brought to prominence by the recent actions of Extinction Rebellion (XR). Its growing presence around the world is certainly aided...

Apr 2019

Symbol Sourcebook: An Authoritative Guide to International Graphic Symbols

The book was first published as a hardcover by McGraw Hill Higher in 1972, the year of author Henry Dreyfuss’ death. Henry was an acclaimed industrial designer and native of Brooklyn, New York. His firm designed a broad range of products including vacuum cleaners, telephones, fountain pens, alarm clocks, a locomotive, tractors, a wall-mounted thermostat,...

Feb 2019

Marked with thought #2

The challenge for Base Design was how to turn corporate elevator company, Mitsulift, into a relevant, contemporary brand. While the logo does a great job of capturing the idea, the real strength is in the broader identity. Australian Design Radio was given a clever, Australia-shaped mark by Christopher Doyle & Co. When the radio’s on-air the...

Nov 2018