Design: Logo

(Ray)

(Fogra 39)Job:08-30930 Title:RP-Design Logo

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A Closer Look

(Text)

The Anchor logo and the Hop Rod form seem

destined to be combined into one stunning mark.

Parks picks up on this and deepens the visual

concept at every turn. He graphically represents

the beer hops visual pun on the anchor shaft

and translates the toy’s foot pegs and handle-

bars into anchor prongs.

A favorite client of mine asked me to develop

a promotional logo which celebrated the

anniversary of her gastro pub, the Anchor. The

client is an abstract thinker and lover of local

civic history. She loved the idea of celebrating

a novelty product called The Hop Rod, that was

made in Wichita, Kansas, in the early ’70s by

Chance Manufacturing. This little gizmo was a

crazy gas-powered pogo stick that never really

took off. My task was to try to bring the two

notions together and somehow not confuse the

hell out of her patrons.

In a fit of desperation, interspersed with a

moment of fear, I meditated on the inherent

visual qualities of the hop rod and EUREKA!

I conceptualized a vertical shaft, with horizontal

extrusions on both the top and bottom, similar

to an anchor.

To make the solution more playful, a rider was

considered. This became an obvious way for

further connection with the nautical theme of

the pub. The final visual became a metaphor on

how my client viewed her business—a unique

machine that grew and gained momentum, as

she added fuel.

An interesting alternative to the final direction,

Parks pairs the original mermaid from the an-

chor logo with the Hop Rod, but renders her form

in a very snappy ’70s line-art style. With his

illustrative skills, I think Parks could have made

this direction just as successful.

FIRM: CHRIS PARKS

DESIGNER / ILLUSTRATOR: CHRIS PARKS

ART DIRECTOR: CHRIS PARKS

CLIENT:

THE ANCHOR

(Ray)

(Fogra 39)Job:08-30930 Title:RP-Design Logo

#175 Dtp:225 Page:16

001-272_30930.indd 16 9/2/13 10:59 AM

(Ray)

(Fogra 39)Job:08-30930 Title:RP-Design Logo

#175 Dtp:225 Page:17

001-272_30930.indd 17 9/2/13 9:55 AM

1 7

(Text)

Parks builds all his logos with a brilliant optical balance between

positive and negative space. This mark borders on being a spot

illustration, but because of the simplified graphic rendering style

and reducibility, it succeeds in either camp. As you can see, this logo

has the perfect amount of detail to make a very engaging T-shirt even

without any additional embellishment.

Chris’s skills as an illustrator enable him to

provide clear visual ideas to his clients even

at the very initial stages of the project. This

“Custom Culture” direction would have lent a

much more masculine feel to the finished logo.

(Ray)

(Fogra 39)Job:08-30930 Title:RP-Design Logo

#175 Dtp:225 Page:17

001-272_30930.indd 17 9/2/13 10:59 AM