Design of the Week: Unwired Minds Customer Blog

Let’s say, for example’s sake, that you own a farm called “Lynd’s Blue Frog Farm” and are seeking a logo on 99designs. You can safely bank on receiving designs that involve an image of (can you guess?) a blue frog. The company name conveniently comes with a built-in image that gives designers a well-defined space in which to maneuver. Gently steer them toward the finer details of what you want and bingo, a marvelous logo by American designer :: scott :::

THE CHALLENGE: Now, let’s say you’re in the business of something a bit more abstract – say, an “innovation consulting firm” called Unwired Minds. Appropriate imagery doesn’t exactly spring to mind. Yet, there you are, before an array of designers the world over, requesting a visualization of values like “strength, independence, power, creativity.” Is it too much to ask? Might you have to settle for some vague abstraction or generic Graphic Design 101 geometry?

THE APPROACH: Not if you communicate the right way, like Unwired Minds did – namely, by relying on a predominantly visual language. Rather than spending paragraphs describing the function, values and identity of his complex company, this contest holder kept his brief, well, brief — at least in terms of wordage. To get his preferences across, he instead included a link to the website of a similar company, uploaded existing logos that he liked (Nike, Atari, Chanel …), and even directed designers to an image-packed article on our Designer Blog.

THE RESULT: The winning design, by Ajoy Paul of India, combines the sleek elegance of piano keys with the mysterious power of Stone Henge or perhaps the monolith from 2001: A Space Odyssey. It also employs an engaging minimalist gestalt technique, allowing the viewer’s perceptual faculties to do some of the work in filling negative spaces to complete the “U” and “M.” On top of that, it is versatile and functional. Strength, independence, power, creativity? Yes on all counts.

Have you come across any particularly awesome logos this week? Post them in the comments!

Alex Bigman is liaison to 99designs' awesome community of graphic designers. He is a recent grad of UC Berkeley, where he studied history of art and cognitive science.