A B-Side BY Armin

Fusion (TV)

About: (Est. 2013) A new TV channel by ABC News and Univision News, “Fusion capitalizes on Univision’s news leadership and expertise in reaching U.S. Hispanics and ABC’s global news leadership to serve over 50 million Hispanics, the youngest and fastest-growing demographic in the U.S. Currently, Hispanics represent 16 percent of the total population in the United States, a number that is projected to double to 30 percent by 2050. Hispanics wield considerable spending power of over $1.2 trillion and have an increasing impact on social, economic and political trends.”

Design by: Logo: Caspar Nonner through Buster

Ed.’s Notes: Univision continues its streak of commissioning (and approving) unintelligible logos and watered-down versions of the parent brand wordmark. Bigger view of the logo below (or after the jump).

Relevant links: ABC press release.

Select quote: “‘The logo is a powerful representation of Fusion’s identity. Our brand will reflect the attitude of millennials — shaped by a sense of unity with a voice that’s fun, fresh and even irreverent,’ said Beau Ferrari, interim President for Fusion and Executive Vice President of Operations for Univision Networks. […] ‘This shape is bold, evolving and engaging. It is an iconic stamp that will be instantly recognizable,’ added Michael Berkman, VP and Creative Director, Fusion.”

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Opinion BY Armin

Dutch King Gets His Day in the Sun

On April 30, 2013, Willem-Alexander Claus George Ferdinand (Willem-Alexander to friends and press) became the King of the Kingdom of the Netherlands (the Netherlands to friends and bloggers) as his mother, Queen Beatrix, abdicated the throne after 33 years. Willem-Alexander is the first King to take the throne in 123 years. For his inauguration day and the days leading up to it, the City of Amsterdam worked with Amsterdam-based Koeweiden Postma on the “dressing” of the city to celebrate the occasion.

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Opinion BY Armin

Historic Houses Trust Presses Caps Lock Key

Established in 1980, the Historic Houses Trust of New South Wales in Australia protects and cares “for significant historic places, buildings, collections and landscapes with integrity, and enable people to enjoy and learn about them.” Along with twelve of the state’s most important historic houses, the trust also manages landscapes, a library and collections of paintings, furniture and objects. This month the trust announced it would be launching a new, public-facing brand under the name of Sydney Living Museums with the goal of increasing visits and awareness of this cultural institution. It will maintain Historic Houses Trust as the operational name. The new identity has been designed by Sydney-based Frost*.

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Opinion BY Armin

:idden H

Established in 1997 with the merger of three institutions, Novant Health is network of physician clinics, outpatient centers, and hospitals that serves the states of North Carolina, Virginia, South Carolina, and Georgia. Headquartered in Winston-Salem, NC, it consists of more than 1,100 physicians and 24,000 employees at more than 450 locations and is one of the top 25 integrated health systems in the United States. This month Novant Health introduced a new identity designed by New York, NY-based Prophet.

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A B-Side BY Armin

Vikings (TV Series)

About: “The HISTORY original series Vikings transports us to the brutal and mysterious world of Ragnar Lothbrok (Travis Fimmel), a Viking warrior and farmer who yearns to explore—and raid—the distant shores across the ocean. His ambition puts him at odds with local chieftain Earl Haraldson (Gabriel Byrne), who insists on sending his raiders to the impoverished east rather than the uncharted west. [&hellip] Vikings was created and written by Michael Hirst (Elizabeth, The Tudors).”

Design by: King and Country.

Ed.’s Notes: Really digging this. Plenty more below (or after the jump).

Relevant links: Bedow case study.

Provided quote:“The left side of the ‘V’ tells us about the lesser-known aspect of Vikings: family and life. It seamlessly blends three key elements of their character: the upper section is efficient and almost scientific, denoting how technologically advanced they were, especially in ship-building expertise; the middle section is a graphic representation of brotherhood and unbreakable bonds, featuring art reminiscent of tribal emblems; the lower section is about growth and life, with an illustration that is similar to a section of weaving tapestry, taking visual cues from a family crest or coat of arms. The right side of the ‘V’ tells the story of war — and the violence, death and conflict that were big parts of Viking society. Shaped like the blade of a sword, small chinks are hacked out of what would have been fastidiously hand-forged steel weaponry, stained from blood of the fallen.”

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A B-Side BY Armin

Amsterdam Gay Pride

About: (Est. 1996) “Amsterdam Gay Pride is a week to remember where we have been, celebrate how far we have come and take pride in where we are going. It is a captivating festival that salutes the power and beauty of sexual diversity. Bursting with loving energy and colourful creativity the party makes sure no one escapes the provoking and entertaining vibe of giving everyone the right to be who they are and love whoever they choose.”

Design by: VBAT.

Ed.’s Notes: Nice, subtle take on the rainbow color palette. Bigger and single-color versions of the logo below (or after the jump).

Relevant links: N/A.

Provided quote: “AGP has approached VBAT to create this new identity as the former ‘We Are’ logo, also developed by VBAT in 2008, will be used in a broader context as hallmark for all gay events in Amsterdam in the future. Therefore a new dedicated festival identity was wanted.”

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A B-Side BY Armin

Western Union

About: (Est. 1856) “Western Union connects people and businesses around the globe by providing fast, reliable and convenient ways to move money. Our 160-year history and 510,000 Western Union Agent locations in more than 200 countries and territories strengthen our commitment to offering our services in every corner of the globe.”

Design by: N/A.

Ed.’s Notes: Monogram view below. There is something interesting about this or at least there is some potential there for the WU monogram to be interesting.

Relevant links: N/A.

A B-Side BY Armin

BlackJet

About: (Est. 2013) Co-founded by Uber founder Garrett Camp and with high-profile investors including Ashton Kutcher, Will Smith and Jay-Z, BlackJet launched in 2013. The service allows a wider market of luxury travelers to book individual seats on private planes instantly, at the touch of an iPhone.

Design by: Moving Brands.

Ed.’s Notes: This looks expensive.

Relevant links: Moving Brands case study.

Select quote: “The visual identity Moving Brands developed for BlackJet is bold, confident and elegant. The ‘B’ is abstracted, drawing directly from the design direction’s concept of the fast, frictionless journey. It takes the subtle shape of wings, both in the positive space created by the curves of the ‘B’ and the negative space, which reveals the sleek nose and wings of a jet. A moody, sexy, monochromatic color palette and contrasting, geometric font further advance the personality of the brand and differentiate its identity from its competitors.”

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Opinion BY Armin

Concentric Philanthropy

Established in 1999 by a group of power players, chief among them actor Paul Newman, the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy (CECP) brings together senior executives from the world’s leading companies to steer them towards meaningful, high-quality philanthropy. To date, CECP includes “more than 180 CEO members, representing 150 major corporations and over $10 billion in annual corporate giving.” This list alone, of CEO members, is probably worth more in pixels than what’s in your bank account right now. CECP recently introduced a new identity designed by Futurebrand.

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Friday Likes BY Armin

Friday Likes 35

Simplicity is the theme of today’s likes.

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A B-Side BY Armin

T Magazine

About: (Est. 2004) “T: The New York Times Style Magazine is a perfect-bound magazine dedicated to fashion, living, beauty, holiday, travel and design coverage. The magazine was launched in August 2004. It is published 15 times a year and distributed within the Sunday edition of The New York Times newspaper. Since December 2007, an international edition has been distributed with the weekend edition of the International Herald Tribune. Stefano Tonchi was editor until 2010; his replacement was Sally Singer. Singer left in 2012 and was replaced by Deborah Needleman. T is not a supplement of The New York Times Magazine, but a distinct publication with its own staff.” (Source: Wikipedia)

Design by: In-house.

Ed.’s Notes: It’s sad to see the iconic, blackletter “T” go, but perhaps this will give the magazine its own wings to be considered separate of The New York Times. Before/After of the cover below (or after the jump).

Relevant links: Fishbowl mention.

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Opinion BY Armin

Demanding More

Established in 2006, Demand Media is a “leading digital media company that informs and entertains one of the Internet’s largest audiences, helps advertisers find innovative ways to engage with their customers and enables publishers to expand their online presence.” They manage the immensely popular sites eHow and Cracked as well as livestrong.com and indieclick.com, among other smaller sites and services. This month Demand Media introduced a new identity designed by San Francisco, CA-based Manual.

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Opinion BY Sam Becker

Vitamin V

Founded in 1977 in New York City, The Vitamin Shoppe has grown to be one of the largest purveyors of nutritional supplements in North America with over 500 stores and 20,000 unique SKUs. According to their website, The Vitamin Shoppe is the "first and only choice of people seeking to fulfill their health and wellness needs."

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A B-Side BY Armin

Actavis

About: (Est. 1956) “Actavis [combination of Watson Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and the Actavis Group] is a global, integrated specialty pharmaceutical company focused on developing, manufacturing and distributing generic, brand and biosimilar products. The Company has global and U.S. headquarters in Parsippany, New Jersey, USA, and international headquarters in Zug, Switzerland. Actavis is the world’s third-largest generics prescription drug manufacturer.”

Design by: Lippincott.

Ed.’s Notes: Bigger view of the logo below (or after the jump).

Relevant links: Actavis CEO message. Lippincott press release.

Select quote: “Our new icon speaks to our Company’s fast-evolving business, as well as its dynamic culture. A close look reveals a “W” shape emerging from a shaded “A”, a subtle historical reference to the Watson heritage and acquisition of Actavis.

Our new color stands out in the universe of pharmaceutical industry competitors and reflects growth — a fundamental foundation for our Company and its future. The result is a new, powerful and accessible visualization that celebrates our Company’s emergence as a global pharmaceutical leader, and visually defines our focus on growth and success in the future.”

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A B-Side BY Armin

Langenscheidt

About: (Est. 1856) “Langenscheidt is a privately held German publishing company, specialising in language resource literature. As well as producing monolingual dictionaries, Langenscheidt also produces bilingual dictionaries and travel phrase-books, as well as maps and atlases.” (Source: Wikipedia)

Design by: KW43 Branddesign.

Ed.’s Notes: Now that is how you build a logo with structure (below or after the jump). German engineering at its best!

Relevant links: Exclusive images at Corporate Identity Portal.

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Opinion BY Rietje Gieskes

A New Vision for New Visions for Public Schools

New York city public schools benefit greatly from private sector support through organizations like New Visions for Public Schools. Currently the largest of its kind, the nonprofit has prominent supporters like the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the U.S. Department of Education. The organization provides funding to a variety of schools, including over 74 public and charter schools, and helps to develop teacher residency programs. With a new day, comes a new vision, as demonstrated by the organization’s new identity designed by New York, NY-based Chermayeff & Geismar.

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Opinion BY Armin

It’s a Bookworld After All

Owned by Pearson Australia Group after it purchased the Australian Borders and Angus & Robertson online businesses in 2011, Bookworld is an online book, music, and video retailer with over half a million existing customers and a focus on Australian authors and artists. It also has a very clear target of beating Amazon by offering lower prices and free delivery. Earlier this Fall, Bookworld introduced a new identity designed by Interbrand Australia.

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Opinion BY Armin

IC, UC, We all C for California

Established in 1868, the University of California (UC) is the public university system of the state of California that encompasses ten campuses: Berkeley, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, Riverside, Davis, San Diego, Irvine, Santa Cruz, and Merced. Rarely will people say they attend or teach (past or present) at “UC” or “University of California”, they are usually very specific as to which campus — its most well known probably being Berkeley and UCLA — so UC and University of California are more of a parent company. UC “includes more than 220,000 students and more than 170,000 faculty and staff, with more than 1.5 million alumni living and working around the world.” So, it’s big. Starting in September, UC introduced a new logo and identity. No design credit given. And no specifications shared as to how, or if at all, this logo affects the unique logos of each of the ten campuses. Currently, the identity has been rolled out in an admissions website separate from the main site, a campaign website for an initiative called Onward California, and on another (see Stanford) very nice brand mini site.

Update: It has been confirmed that the design — everything from the logo to the video to the applications — was carried in-house, by an 11-person creative team formed about three and a half years ago. The post has also been updated with quotes from the team. (Full credits at the end.)

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A B-Side BY Armin

The Animation Guild

About: (Est. 1952) “The Animation Guild is Local 839 of the International Alliance of Theatrical and Stage Employees (IATSE). We are a labor organization that represents animation and visual effects artists. We do for our members what every labor organization does: negotiate wage minimums and working conditions, provide pension and health benefits (specifically through the Motion Picture Industry Pension and Health Plan) and act as an advocate for our members over disputes between employees and employers. Our goal is to provide a seamless cloak of benefits and the strength of a collective voice to our members across the animation industry.”

Design by: Malcolm Grear Designers.

Ed.’s Notes: That old logo simply cannot be true! LOL, man, LOL. New logo has nice, old-school concept to it. Larger view below (or after the jump).

Relevant links: Animation Guild blog post.

Select Quote:“As the lowercase ‘a’ and ‘g’ join together to form the symbol, the letters seem to be in constant movement, animated. They appear linked and interwoven but they also actively flip back and forth, each letter switching from foreground to background.”

Thanks to Dave Logan for the tip.

Friday Likes BY Armin

Friday (Dis)Likes 24

This week I might be poisoning the Friday Likes well, but too many wrecks piled up together that I thought it would be worthy to do Friday Likes bizarro world with some really hideous work. Enjoy. Or not.

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