In today’s article, and continuing with the last article’s topic, we’re going to talk about logotypes. But this time, the logotypes we’re going to discuss about are the motoring logos.
If we pay attention to the motoring brands like Mercedes, Alfa Romeo, Fiat, Renault, etc., we can see that practically all of them have something in common: the use of effects and tri-dimensionality in their logotypes. If we compare them, we see that all the logos have shines and shadows, and colour changes that mark certain volume in the shapes and the letters which compose them.
In this image, we can see the evolution of many brands’ logos, which have moved from being spot-colour logos to using effects and tri-dimensionality:
We can guess the main reason of this change: the brands desire to create logotypes which resemble their physical representations in the cars sheet metals, maybe for a better recognition by the customer. From our point of view this inclination is wrong, because when designing a logotype, you should look for pragmatism and simplicity to do it more versatile and efficient. That is to say, we believe the logotype must be designed independently of its support, since they’re two separated things that, when put together, might cause adaptation and brand representation problems.
However, the taste for effects and volumes in logotypes can also be justified in a historical way. It hasn’t been that long since the technology revolution which caused the computer’s invention. This had an evident direct influence in graphic design, and the new tools allowed to experiment (almost) without limits. With that, the brands started to search the vanguard, to transmit an innovative, technological and exotic personality through their logos; they wanted to go beyond the simplicity of the analogical world prevailing up to that time, by resorting to effects and volumes only graphically reproducible with a computer.
Nowadays, people have already acknowledged the lack of limits offered by technology, and we live in a world where innovating becomes increasingly difficult. The overexposure to images and messages that we experience forces the brands to change their goals and strategies, returning to the extreme simplification in most cases. This is indeed symptomatic, since graphic design and branding change in line with the society, which is making less and less effort and demands simpler inputs.
This fact is exemplified with the change of logotype of three well-known motoring brands: Audi, Citroën and Mini. All of them, which had a 3D logotype and overloaded with effects, have decided to make the change to flat and monochromatic logotypes, keeping their essence and obviating anything superfluous, as Modesto García explains in this Brandemia article. In our opinion, this trend is going to be mainstream, and as happened with Mercedes and its then innovative 3D logo, every brand will copy their competitors’ changes in order to live up in an increasingly saturated and competitive world. Who knows what the graphic design future holds?