LogoLounge Master Library, Volume 2

Job:01714 Title:Logolounge Mester Library Voi 2

(Rockport) Page:24

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Job:01714 Title:Logolounge Mester Library Voi 2

(Rockport) Page:24

A logo that I created and still like a lot is for the

California Conservation Corps. Basically, the

Corps’ mission is to conserve natural resources

for future generations. I took a graphical version

of a mother brown bear—the brown bear is the

state animal of California—and created a cub out

of the negative space in her body.

This logo became a symbol for protection of

natural resources for future generations. It tied

Michael Vanderbyl is dean of design

of California College of the Arts. He established

Vanderbyl Design in 1973 and has since gone on

to work in many fi elds of design, most recently in

furniture retail spaces. An acclaimed speaker and

winner of dozens of design awards, Vanderbyl is

known for his fi gurative, storytelling logos, many of

which have survived well for decades.

Why do animals spark the creative mind

like they do?

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Often, animals come to mind on a logo project

because they are integral to the subject. For

instance, it would be hard to do a logo for Coyote

Books without using a coyote.

But animals are fi gurative elements that people

relate to. They’re friendly, even when we show

them as ferocious animals. The Cardinals

football team has this ferocious-looking bird

logo, but it still cracks me up.

Animals also end up serving as metaphors for

the human condition. Pixar has lots of movies

like this, starring fi sh or panda bears. They take

the place of humans and their various traits,

and human viewers are more accepting of them.

Animals aren’t politicized; they are neutral.

Especially in logos, you don’t want something

that is already politicized or culturally off-putting.

Using an animal in a logo brings things to a

different plane, a more neutral place.

I also think that animals, for the most part, are

thought of fondly by people. Almost everyone

has seen animals in nature or at the zoo, or they

have pets. So including an animal creates a safe

place. The designer is the one who adds the

personality that is unique to the project.

Animals also have interesting shapes that are so

much more engaging than the human shape. We

tend to view them from the side, not the front as

we do when we picture people. The face is the

way into getting to know a person; body shape is

how we get to know animals.

Why are we so prone to turn animals into

symbols?

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A lot of animals already have a symbolic

nature—tenacity or sweetness, for example. We

just take that nature and build on it. Puma, as a

brand, has done that very well. The actual

animal is sleek and fast, and therefore the logo

based on it successfully refl ects the product.

You just have to

consider very carefully

all of the attributes of

an animal before you

include it

in a design.

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Micheal Vanderbyl, Vanderbyl Design

The Power of

Stories

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