51–60 of 75 posts
Paula Scher, you can't win them all.
interesting tidbit from the comments there; this design firm, Pentagram, also did the recent redesign for EFF: https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2018/07/effs-new-logo-member-s... Looks very similar, and while I strongly dislike the Library of Congress redesign, it almost works for EFF.
It is the same logo. Big heavy sans-serif font with the full name of the org stuck in the middle. The only difference is EFF's big EFF letters are stretched and the full title is condensed, while LIBRARY LIBRARY's big LIBRARY is condensed and the full title is normal-width.
Best of luck to the LIBRARY LIBRARY OF CONGRESS on their new logo.
If they would just delete the second "library" and resist the temptation to put images inside of words it'd be alright I think.
Blech.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I get that Pentagram feels they have enough of a handle on good design that they know the right way to break some of the rules of design. But this feels like breaking the rules of design so much that it's actually breaking the rules, in a way that produces something unpleasant and ugly. I mean... a close cousin of Impact? Black and orange? A second, unnecessary copy of the word 'library' that's so large it's hard to…
It's seriously surprising that a premiere design company produced this.
The difference is night and day. Imagine how fantastic that kind of modernizing light touch could have looked for this client, too.
I'll gladly concede that there could be a better logo than what previously existed, but this isn't it.
When I look at the old logo, I think "professional and clever". When I look at the new, I think "WE'RE SHOUTING IN A LIBRARY! A LIBRARY LIBRARY!"
If this places me in among the unwashed masses that "just don't get it", so be it. I see regression, not improvement here.
interesting tidbit from the comments there; this design firm, Pentagram, also did the recent redesign for EFF: https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2018/07/effs-new-logo-member-s... Looks very similar, and while I strongly dislike the Library of Congress redesign, it almost works for EFF.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's seriously surprising that a premiere design company produced this.
Contrast this with their excellent identity refresh for American Express: https://www.pentagram.com/work/american-express-1 The difference is night and day. Imagine how fantastic that kind of modernizing light touch could have looked for this client, too.
My gut reaction is that this new logo is strictly worse than the old one. This is my first time seeing either of the logos. Can someone with a graphic arts background explain why the LoC is so attracted to this new design (after only 8 years with the previous one)?
They traded what was "just a logo" for an entire design system. This is the branding equivalent of Google’s “Material Design.” Also for what it’s worth Pentagram — and Paula Scher — are very prestigious, considered top-of-their-field. But I agree they phoned this in. Unnecessary and uninspired.
The new one is hideous and redundant, as are all of the alternatives (which look more like positioning/alignment errors in Microsoft Word).
1. "LIBRARY Library" -- really?
2. The colors don't evoke a library OR Congress, but a construction site.
3. There's no "logo" here, strictly speaking: just a bunch of words.
The article even explicitly says "Our view here at the Library of Congress is the image of a treasure chest, filled with limitless information and services, ready to explore and amaze if you open it up."
There's absolutely nothing in this new logo that communicates "the image of a treasure chest" filled with anything at all.
Similarly, the "bookshelf" examples look less like a bookshelf and more like someone having issues putting clip art into text in Word.
I really hope feedback about this logo influences all involved parties to reconsider this design.
In yet another bold move for America, President Trump mandates that all gov webdesign will be done via Fiverr Gigs...
I definitely prefer the old logo. The new one feels like it was made in paint using system default fonts. It's not necessarily bad, just feels generic.
I get that Pentagram feels they have enough of a handle on good design that they know the right way to break some of the rules of design. But this feels like breaking the rules of design so much that it's actually breaking the rules, in a way that produces something unpleasant and ugly. I mean... a close cousin of Impact? Black and orange? A second, unnecessary copy of the word 'library' that's so large it's hard to…
The problem is (a) the print layout, while nice, is neither innovative, nor suitable to the brief (it's a carbon copy of every cultural/avant garde/art magazine I've seen recently) and (b) it's very restrictively print-oriented. The iPhone X screens look like lazy afterthoughts.