The Wink: Thought on Logotype Design (Part 1)
Recently, I was asked give a workshop on logotype creation. As teaching always does, it forced me to articulate and consolidate my 10+ years experience of mucking around with letterforms.
TL:DR? Don’t worry. It all boils down to this: “The Wink.”
We all know what a wink is, you’ve seen one; probably tried it at least once, texted the emojis and before that, the “;” substituted for the ubiquitous facial expression. But how does it apply to logotype design?
1. A wink is non-verbal. It’s all visual — which is exactly what logotypes are for: being seen and read.
2. It signals hidden knowledge or intent. It suggests that there’s more or extra layers to what is just “spelled out”.
3. It’s memorable. Has anyone winked at you before? Perhaps you smiled and winked back (or not), but you definitely remembered that moment.
That’s what great logotypes do. They wink at you. The most well-known example is the FedEx logo. If you’ve not already realised, there’s an arrow between the E and x. Designed in 1994 by Lindon Leader at Landor Associates, it’s deceptively simple.
It’s also so incredibly memorable that once you see the arrow, you never forget it. I once sat in a meeting where when asked for his opinion on the proposed logotype designs, a senior director of operations recounted how he brings up the arrow in the FedEx logo all the time in conversations. He was not a designer, but he was proud that he knew the “story” behind the FedEx logo. As Creative Review writes, “it is impossible not to think “that’s clever”.”
That, is the power of the wink. It’s precisely that moment when the viewer sees the typographic Easter egg left behind by the designer. There’s the thrill of discovery, and suddenly a story to tell.
We live in a time of such visual saturation, and every logo, big or small, is jostling for attention. A wink takes a bunch of letterforms and makes them memorable. A wink tells a story beyond just the meaning of the word the letters spell. It combines concept, craft and understanding, and makes a connection with the viewer.
In the next few posts, I’ll detail how I’ve attempted this in the course of my work so far (the hits, the misses). Stay tuned, and do follow/comment if you’d like to continue the conversation.
