Geelong Cats Football Club 2007 Logo Redesign
Vector Graphic by design firm Cato Partners
These are the twinned new logos of the Geelong Cats. Each were designed by design firm Cato Partners to reflect the club values of Respect, Precision, Adventurous, Conviction, Unity and Commerce. They involve the shield motif which portrays them to be strong and well defended, as well as keeping a traditional feel to the logos. For the purpose of this critique I am focusing on the logo of the stylised cats face rather than the silhouetted version.
This logo gives the impression that if you mess with The Cats you will come to regret it. The angry eyes and hissing/roaring jaws embody pure menace. Although cats can be cute, if you have ever been scratched or bitten you will know that you don't want to be on their bad side.
This version of the logo is the "main marketing logo" of The Cats while the other is their "on field identity" it is clever in that it mirrors the uniforms which are simple blue and white stripes which and are now morphed into the cats face. It seems worth noting that The Cats are one of the few teams who retained the traditional horizontally striped design to their uniforms when most others went over to a more "modern" style, however it is not the uniforms we are discussing here.
The logo displays an expert use of line and shape, the horizontal lines/bars of colour merge seamlessly with the cat image, the highly contrasting colour scheme gives a very bold look to the logo. It is strongly symmetrical and employs the principle of stability while still having a dynamic look. The waving, organic lines seem to suggest a flag flying in the breeze. The use of negative space in the cats face is very effective and instantly recognisable. The reversed out type for the word "Geelong" almost disappears when we look away from it and seems merely a continuation of the striped theme. The Bold, square font for "Cats" contrasts well with the rest of the design which is predominantly curved.
The design while being highly stylised and minimalist also seems rooted in surrealism. To me it is reminiscent of the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland which is also appropriate, in that it says "Beware The Cats powers of deception!".
The Cats anthem is "We are The Cats! The greatest team of all!". I know little of football, but for me I feel that they do at least have the best logo.
Logo Application:
Official 1936 Berlin Olympic Games Poster
Designed by Franz Würbel, June 1934
Screenprint
In the foreground it features the Quadriga from the Brandenburg Gate, a landmark of the city of Berlin. In the middleground is the figure of a wreathed victor, his arm raised in the Olympic salute, symbolising Olympic sport. In the background are the five interlocking Olympic rings, representing the five continents, and coloured to contain at least one of the colours from the flag of every participating country.
When considering the meaning of each element of this design, one cannot forget that we are looking at an image from two years prior to the beginning of Hitlers campaign to make the world Germany. It would be foolhardy to look on it as anything short of a tool of the Third Reich's Propaganda Ministry.
This poster was several years in development. After a nationwide competition was held, no winner was announced and instead the 'Propaganda Committee for the Olympic Games Berlin 1936' selected key elements from the best entries and had graphic designer Franz Würbel re-work them into the poster we see in a way that was designed to accentuate the power of Germany.
The principles at work in this poster are like a combination of stability and dynamics. This has been used in a very clever way. One can notice that the Olympic victor, the rings and the words "Olympic Games" are aligned to the grid in a strictly stable arrangement. This is combined with the image of the Brandenburg Gate and the words "Germany Berlin - 1936" which are not in line with the grid but instead charging in on a diagonal in a very dynamic way. I believe this has been done quite deliberately to emphasise Germany as a fast moving, dynamic power soon to overshadow the old traditions with their so-called "New World Order".
The Olympic victor image is another propaganda tool in this case and has been rendered to resemble a member of Hitlers proposed Arian master race. The way that the head of the character with its typically Greek olive-leaf wreath interacts with the circular forms of the Olympic Rings even seems to suggest telepathic emanations, and the promotion of this ability was another common ploy of Hitlers propaganda machine.
The figure is even coloured in a greenish yellow that resembles gold. This is of course a very reasonable personification of the Olympic ideal, but yet it also seems to scream "Germany will win!". Also the exaggerated size of the figure implies the superhuman. His gaze is cast over and above we the viewer, it gives us a sense of our own insignificance as it looks ahead to the horizon and the future.
The font used is very similar to the style of the letterforms on inscriptions on ancient Greek architecture which ties in perfectly with the Olympic aesthetic. The colour scheme contrasting the dark blues in the foreground with the bright gold figure behind give the composition a sense of energy and excitement.
In many ways the Nazi's may have been the perfect design team to promote the Olympics. The ideal of "Faster, Higher, Stronger" was I think very close to their hearts and is not so different to trying to create a superior, master race.
I feel that this poster is a masterpiece of design work, both as an Olympic poster and as a government propaganda tool. It is even slightly worrying that I have found I've gained a new respect for its creators. I've got no love for the Nazi's but they really know how to build a corporate identity.
Bibliography:
http://images.artnet.com/WebServices/picture.aspx?date=20040205&catalog=18047&gallery=111588&lot=00275&filetype=2
http://olympic-museum.de/poster/poster1936.htm
http://ajhblog.files.wordpress.com/2009/09/geelong-cats-logo2.jpg
http://www.thecattery.com.au/Images/Geelong2008Logo1.jpg
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Simon_%28painter%29
http://www.dhm.de/lemo/objekte/pict/629_1/index.html
http://www.janecky.com/olympics/motto.html
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