The new City of Vancouver logo
As a guest of Kirk LaPointe on Vancouver’s Roundhouse Radio, Straydog’s Rob Barnett comments on the newly design City of Vancouver Logo.
Airing on Monday evening February 27th on Roundhouse Radio – 98.3 FM, Rob Barnett is interviewed by Kirk LaPointe regarding the City of Vancouver’s decision to design a new city logo/wordmark, here are some treats from that interview;
Asked as to whether the new logo should is a good design or not, Rob mentions that ” A well defined, well designed logo or wordmark should help to capture an audiences’ imagination, it should instill a sense of belonging among it’s residents and it should be beneficial for economic purposes such as tourism and business investment. Vancouver is a vibrant, progressive and naturally beautiful city. When we think of Vancouver, when visitors, tourists, residents or investors think of Vancouver, what comes to mind? The logo should reflect these thoughts and emotions. The logo should help to inspire the viewer and to communicate all the great things that are Vancouver…..this logo certainly misses the mark on that regard”.
Moreover, what do do city planners and key stakeholders want these people to think when they look at the logo? These are things that a brand should convey. A city brand, logo or wordmark should be a visual representation of everything that a city embodies, it’s personality, it’s culture, it’s beauty, it’s uniqueness. It’s hard to see how this new logo achieves this.
Vancouver is about natural beauty, multiculturalism, progressiveness, openness, our First Nations heritage, the health and vibrant lifestyle of it’s residents. The logo should be a reflection of these qualities and characteristics.
Vancouver is the most livable city in North American, and ranked in the top 5 in the world. We constantly score high in terms of health, education, culture and the environment. Is the new logo a good representation of this?
What was wrong with the old logo? Did the city undergo an exhaustive research process to determine direction for design, did the process involve a thorough analysis of other city brands and logos, did they conduct interviews with key stakeholders, residents, investors or visitors on what they thought of the existing brand or how they view Vancouver…..what inspires them about the city, why they choose to live, visit or invest here?
It’s been reported that they city paid $8,000 for this re-brand or design of the new logo. I would ask how a budget of $8,000 could support a thorough brand development process? In my professional opinion, that’s just not do-able. $8,000 would support some design, without strategy, and it seems that that’s what has occurred here.
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