Rebrands are very topical these days. Not only that, they're making people foam at the mouth. Should that surprise us? As designers (and students of it) we know our work serves a functional purpose, Graphic Design isn't just some pretentious art form (hopefully, or at least not most of the time), it is sometimes recognised and appreciated by the public, they might even react emotionally to it, even if that is on a subliminal level, which is good.
So whilst we expect our work to produce a reaction or response, do we feel comfortable with it being mocked by those outside of the industry? We should expect and welcome criticism from our peers, but as Graphic Designers, do we really appreciate what emotional impact our work can have on those outside of the industry? More importantly, do we really want them to care THAT much? If not, who are we actually designing for?
The main function of Graphic Design is for it to communicate effectively. Without sounding completely pretentious, the principles involved in that idea might be lost on some. Its not uncommon to see Clip Art and 5 different fonts on the side of a Transit Van. Does that mean that whoever decided that has no taste? Not neccesarily, they just thought it looked more complex than a blue nail or a simple square and type. Thats the issue here, as designers strive to create distinctive, simple, effective work, alot of the public think they want something thats literal and looks like it took time. So when people react to rebrands with the comment '"My 4 year old could do that", thats perhaps why.
Obviously some branding and rebranding projects are terrible, but some also just need a little time to win you over. Think London 2012 and how good that looked when it was rolled out throughout the Olympic Park. It might have just been the patriotic fanfare that won alot of people over, but I definitely think it was an impressive piece of work when you saw it in place, despite our earlier fears. The California University Logo caused outrage recently because the new logo they had designed was a big transformation from their old logo, which was filled with 'heritage', and all that stuff. Some argued that it was so wrong to change it this radically, because the old logo in itself, was distinct from the rest of the University marks. But it wasn't, it fitted snugly alongside the rest of them around America. As Michael Beirut pointed out, people want to fit in, not stand out, even if they don't realise it. Whilst designers should be aware of the vital importance of creating work that is for the Client and the customers and those connected with it, they can't help but be aware of their own desire to create something unique, perhaps even if that isn't entirely necessary. We'd all quite like to stand out, perhaps.
I think another problem designers face is the way we all react to things so fast today. No matter what your evaluating, a footballer, a song, a logo, people almost feel compelled to form an opinion almost instantly. We click 'Like', and we write hilarious satirical one liners in comment boxes on the state of our economy and what 'she' was wearing yesterday. This is the culture we live in today. It's quite ironic, that despite the fact that we can communicate further, faster and too more people than ever before, what we often actually have to say, is pretty ill considered. You'd have hoped it would have been the opposite.
Sources:
Graphic Design as a Spectator Sport By Michael Beirut
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