[IAEP] Moving forward with logos and corporate identity

[Chris Leonard]

On Sun, Aug 3, 2008 at 5:17 PM, Rafael Enrique Ortiz Guerrero <
dirakx at gmail.com> wrote:

>
>> My favorites are these
>>
>> http://sugarlabs.org/go/UITeam/Logo-ideas#Simplified_versions
>>
>> http://sugarlabs.org/go/UITeam/Logo-ideas#Introduce_.22Lab.22_visual_element.3F
>>
>> The first one it's by far the proposal with more work put on it.
>> The second one needs more work but it's a nice idea.
>>
>>
> Maybe this topic is also something to be discussed at the next Sugar
>> Labs IRC meeting?
>>
>

I like elements of these two as well and agree that either needs work.

First, let me say that I posted the "lab visual element" version. What I was
trying to achieve was to evoke "laboratory" with an iconic visual element
rendered in Sugar's distinctive palette (simple line drawing, strong
border, color palette from the small box of crayons).  I think the
Erlenmeyer flask is a reasonably universal icon for "lab", and after a bit
of fussing with Inkscape, I was pleased with that element.

"Sugar" was a bit of a challenge to represent in iconic form, I just didn't
get a "sugary" feel from the cube representations in other examples.  Once
color is added, it becomes a cube, a child's play block perhaps, but not a
sugar cube.  The "sugar" spoon (to a limited extent) visually echoes the
flask and invokes a certain sugariness (maybe) but I still don't think it is
an entirely satisfactory symbol for "sugar". That said, I do not want to
miss the opportunity to thank and credit Eduardo
http://wiki.laptop.org/go/User:HoboPrimate for his spoon image which I
appropriated.  I also like Martin's idea about using a mortarboard as an
iconic image to invoke the concept of "learning".

The sugarlabs wiki didn't allow svg uploads at the time, so I uploaded png,
but I would be more than happy to see anyone who wanted to use this as the
start of their own tinkering.  The svg can be found here:
http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Image:Spoon-flask2.svg

I think this succeeds to the extent that it uses the visual style of the
sugar icons with which we are all so familiar and also evokes simple symbols
that are generally recognizable, but as the "artist", I'm entitled to be my
own harshest critic and point out it's failings.  I'd love to see someone
improve on the elements that I think are right and fix the bits that are
just not there yet, like a better symbolic representation of "sugar" and a
more pleasing balancing of the two elements, the exisiting image has poor
symmettry and feels imbalanced to me..

I actually like the "simplified version" design ideas a great deal, you can
easily see that they are the work of professional graphic artists, their
symmettry and balance is very pleasing to the eye.   I would critique them
in two ways.  One very simple improvement would be to try the addition of a
strong border element that would more closely mirror sugar's current visual
syle.  The second critique is that they use fluid strokes and rounded forms
somewhat more than one expects from familiarity with existing sugar
iconography along with a richer color palette than the 20 or so crayon box
colors one associates with XO.  In an odd way the production values are a
little too good. maybe making the lines a little less elegantly smoothed and
a little more child-like would make it feel more fitting.  I believe that if
a talented artist (not me) worked with their theme (hands cupping sphere)
and rendered it in a more "sugary" visual palette that the results would be
more evocative.

Another important set of criteria to apply in judging a logo concept is to
imagine the logo in all of it's possible future uses: printed in
monochrome and/or full-color on a t-shirt, on a coffee cup, in full color
and/or black/white on letterhead, stitched with  single/multi color
thread(s) onto a monogrammed cap/shirt/backpack, etc.  There is truly both
art and science to good logo design and since Sugar Labs will hopefully be
living with this choice for a long time, I would urge going to a graphics
arts professional with specific logo design work experience, for a final
polish and sanity check at the very least.  I know one or two that I could
try to approach about some pro bono tinkering once there is some agreement
on the theme, but I can't make any promises.  I think the guys that did the
simplified version designs would probably do well if given some feedback on
the visual vocabulary of sugar icons.

Sorry for the long digression, but the topic seemed to be legitimately along
the lines of "what color are we going to paint the bikeshed", so I felt it
wasn't too far off base to post these ramblings on logo aesthetics.

cjl
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