Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Creating a Fun Logo

Over the course of my career as a graphic designer, I've designed many logos, including one for a Presidential event. But invariably it's been the smaller, locally based logos that have provided the most pleasure and satisfaction.

I was once asked to design a logo for a small enterprise that made decals for model car racing enthusiasts. The owner owned a dachshund and wanted a racing dachshund to be the logo.

I immediately thought of the one famous logo with a racing dog — the Greyhound Bus logo — and I set about turning a greyhound into a dachshund. Here was the result:

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17 comments:

  1. No doubt, Mark, this IS a Dachshund. You captured him perfectly. And, in addition, he is all about SPEED. And, he makes me happy just looking at him.

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    1. Dear Gina - I'm glad he makes you happy. My family has owned several dachshunds, and they are very funny little personalities.

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  2. Very cool! I immediately recognized the dachshund. Missy, whose wedding I just featured, had a dachshund for 15 - 16 years!!

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    1. I'm guessing that Charlie the dog, who appears to have been an attendant at Missy's wedding, has some dachshund in his family tree.

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  3. I would bet that's the speediest dachshund there ever was!

    Love your eagle button!

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    1. Hi, Steve - The eagle button dates back to the time of Andrew Jackson and is called a "Jacksonian" by button collectors. Jacksonians were vest buttons and featured different images, but were always brass, the same small size, and with the same rim. You can see more Jacksonians here:

      http://allthingsruffnerian.blogspot.com/2012/01/allure-of-antique-buttons.html

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  4. Hello Mark - who would have thought that you could make a dachshund look speedy - but you have, and he is adorable.

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    1. Dear Rosemary - Perhaps I should turn him into a hood ornament — his ears have the look of 1950's car fins!

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  5. Ohhh that is fun! I love that! What presidential election did you do the logo for?!

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    1. Hi, Stefan - During Ronald Reagan's administration, there was a campaign for tax reform, and I designed a giant post card (and its logo) that was later presented to Speaker Tip O'Neill. The post card was used as a prop at a big rally, and I have a photograph of President Reagan signing "my artwork." Tip O'Neill and Reagan eventually compromised on reform legislation.

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    2. I should add that I have designed campaign material representing both major political parties.

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  6. Hi Mark, So many logos today are dreary and unimaginative--especially those created for large companies and institutions. It seems that they all are designed by humorless committees. It is therefore nice to see one infused with imagination and humor.
    --Road to Parnassus

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    1. Thanks, Jim. I know the logos of which you speak, and I think they've been created to be safe and represent so many bullets on a checklist that they taken on a generic quality.

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  7. Wow! Mark-- what fun to see you in designer-action!!! This is brilliant-- I think the speedy dachshund is even more iconic than the greyhound... I especially love the ears flying! Wonderful work-- I can see why you enjoy these smaller projects-- I'll bet there is more of a sense of fun and freedom.

    Warm regards,
    Erika

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    1. Hi, Erika,

      What I found true in designing corporate identity is that the larger the organization, the more was at stake and hence the more cautious the perameters. I usually provided 3-5 initial possibilities, with one design that might be termed "staid."

      A quarter of my income when I was freelancing came from etched glass designs, and those were always wonderfully idiosyncratic.

      Best wishes,

      Mark

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  8. Really like your dachshound ..you've captured their flapping ears perfectly as well as their big chests.

    Is the button of the month from a uniform ?

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    1. Hi, smr - Thanks for liking the little dachshund and his ears. My brother had a dachshund who was allowed to lick the ice cream box after all the ice cream had been scooped out — then we'd have to wash her ears!

      The eagle button (I was thinking of the 4th of July) is actually quite small, and came from a vest. You can read more about it in my reply to Steve, of The Urban Cottage, a couple of comments up from here.

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