As important as it is to know what works in logo design,
it can be even more important sometimes to know why it works.
And when we're discussing transparency, and especially dimensional
transparency, I have the perfect story for you.
I want you to take yourself back to a time
when technology in the design industry was a bit more limited.
It was 1984, which was definitely before the use of computers in our field.
And Saul Bass, one of the true geniuses of
design, was commissioned to create the logo for AT&T.
At this time, and many traditionalists will tell you this,
logos were pretty much crafted in one or maybe two colors.
There were certainly no gradients because we were still a few decades
from digital printing, and reproduction capabilities
were a major consideration for any logo.
The AT&T globe that the Bass team created definitely showed
dimension, but it was more of a suggestion than true dimensionality.
Within the industry, designers affectionately refer to
this logo as the Death Star because
of its resemblance to the evil satellite of the same name in Star Wars.
This logo was highly regarded and served well for many years to come.
In 2005, Interbrand Design was asked to create a new identity for
AT&T as it was starting to enter a new phase of its life.
Wisely, the new design team understood how much
equity the old logo had with the public.
But they also knew it was time to leave behind
some of the baggage the company had collected over the years.
What was the biggest change though?
Technology.
In the last 20 years, design capabilities had shifted so dramatically.
So Interbrand introduced a new visual identity
that was crafted to appear highly dimensional.
No longer a flat sphere.
The globe was replete with highlights and gradients and transparency that kept
the old stripes, but pulled the whole logo into a photographic reality.
Now we really knew that AT&T was a global power with true international influence.
In the beginning, the original AT&T logo had to literally
be painted onto each of their thousands of AT&T service vans.
No one could even fathom the concept
of painting a realistic, photographic, transparent globe.
But, now, with digital technology, printing the new logo on vinyl to be
applied to an enormous fleet is second nature and the easiest possible solution.
There are still a few naysayers out there
that cling to old school rules of logo design.
But that herd is thinning out.
Good design still trumps technique.
But the designers that embrace future shifts in technology will
continue to create the design that finds relevance with consumers.