What's wrong with the 2012 logo?

Categories: uncategorized

Date: 05 June 2007 21:54:31

No, I'm not defending it, I'm just wondering where to start with describing how bad it is. How about:

- It already looks dated. The graphics were kind of trendy in 1987, but the little moving promo films look like the titles from some show that was on when I was a kid. And a day-glo colour scheme? What, did they only have highlighter pens to work with?
- It's apparently inducing epileptic fits. Shouldn't this have been checked before it was launched?
- It's supposed to appeal to young people, yet a cross section of teenagers I've encountered think it's utter rubbish. I'm guessing it's been designed by people in at least their thirties who think they're "down with the kids" because they've bought an Arctic Monkeys CD.
- I still can't really see the "it looks like someone (probably Lisa Simpson) doing something rude" thing, but equally I can't really see that it says "2012". To me, it's a hunchback singing 'I'm A Little Teapot'.
- Coe and co are banging on with all this pretentious guff about what it's supposed to symbolise - "an invitation to take part and be involved", "a message of welcome and diversity" etc - which conversely just accentuates how it appears to be a bunch of ugly shapes with no coherence. (I'm particularly bemused by Seb claiming the brand will be "hard-working" - is it going to be down the mines for 14 hours a day? What a pile of old cobblers.)
- Worst of all, the British public have been overwhelmingly against the design, yet we're being told that while the logo will "evolve" the basic design will not be changed. So most of us think it's rubbsih, we can't get rid of it - and we're having to pay £400,000 for the pleasure. Oh goody.

Of course, those in favour say that it will grow on us over the next five years; however, I think it's more likely that we'll just end up accepting we're stuck with it and getting used to it. For now, however, it doesn't seem to be getting many people excited about the Olympics, and if anything it's causing even greater antipathy towards the Games being held in London. In its defence, Seb said it was "about reaching out and engaging young people, which is where our challenge is over the next five years; if we don't do that,then frankly the whole project is unsustainable". I wouldn't normally want to see something like this fall flat on its arse, but I can't help thinking in this case it would serve them right if it did.

A mess, in every sense.