AOL --> Aol.

There are always logo/branding redesigns, but Aol.'s new identity is more than just an update:


The biggest changes, typographically, are the use of title case, and the addition of a period (to suggest “confidence, completeness [...] that AOL is the place to go for the best content online, period”). Of course, the new logo is also in white, so as to "reveal" itself from a variety of different backgrounds. Check out this video to see what that means:



A great post on the blog "Brand New":
"Aol. Generation. Next."

And a New York Times article on the change:
"AOL Revamping Its Logo, Hoping to Revive the Brand"

This is just a sneak preview, so we'll see the full change (especially the website update) on December 10...

Doppelganger... sort of.

I was on another blog, when I saw an advertisement for B&G Photography, owned by a couple that does wedding photography. Glad to see they love the ampersand, too! haha


But I can't figure out why they're called B&G. Hmm.

Typography fans in the NY Times!

Just came across an article on typography purists, written by Alice Rawsthorn in the Design section of the New York Times. A highlight:

“I think sometimes that being overly type-sensitive is like an allergy,” said Michael Bierut, a partner in the Pentagram design group in New York. “My font nerdiness makes me have bad reactions to things that spoil otherwise pleasant moments.”

Reminds me of the whole Ikea catalog controversy back in August. The article goes on to discuss historically inaccurate use of fonts. For example:

Take “Titanic,” in which the numbers on the dials of the ship’s pressure gauges use Helvetica, a font designed in 1957, some 45 years after the real “Titanic” sank. Helvetica was also miscast in “Good Night and Good Luck,” which takes place in the early 1950s.

Wow. Getting upset with that is beyond even me!

Top Blogs

50 Excellent Graphic Design Blogs

Top 50 Typography Blogs

I've already added the first two graphic design blogs to my Google Reader. Toxel is full of silly (not necessarily graphic) design posts, and Just Creative Design has a lot of really interesting articles!

Kuler

For all our questionable color choices, we have kuler! The site is a great resource for colorful inspiration.