Interesting interview with Sol Sender about how his team developed the Barack Obama presidential campaign logo.
It’s not an in-depth discussion, but it’s a good starting point for learning how a good, simple brand design can have a life of its own. It’s particularly interesting to see the other candidate designs that made it to the top 3, but didn’t get chosen. The contrast with the page of other campaign logo designs is quite telling.
Lots of people, not just myself, think this is an inspired piece of design. The way the logo can stand on its own, devoid of textual elements, and still be immediately recognisable, is what every designer dreams of being able to achieve. The way in which the logo was adapted into so many different applications while still being immediately recognizable is amazing. The ‘Pirates for Obama’ adaptation is awesome. The Barack O’Lantern website is inspired. “Yes, we carve.” Laugh out loud funny. :)
Of course, given the runaway success of this design, and the amazing homogeneity of previous political candidate designs, we all know what comes next: widespread, boring imitation. Watch for an array of bizarre attempts to duplicate the success of this logo in the next election cycle, and not just in the US.
It may be the sincerest form of flattery, but it will make the imitators look… well, like imitators, not innovators.
What are some of your favourite logo designs? What makes them special?