Virgin Atlantic unveiled a new livery and new logo this week with the usual Virgin fanfare. The biggest difference is the logotype, which I think will become the standard identity for the airline, though it's a bit unclear if that is the case at the moment. The Virgin Atlantic letters are now set in a lightweight custom drawn typeface (Chalet-esque) and appears in their secondary purple color. It's quite a bit different than their old futuristic sans. The identity still features the same Virgin tailfin and doesn't lose too much in recognition as a result.

Old Virgin Atlantic Identity:

New Virgin Atlantic Identity:

London brand agency, Circus, was commissioned in 2008 to update the brand but the new livery and logo were developed by Johnson Banks. This is the result of their work. Not only has the main identity changed but there are other adjustments to the livery of each plane featuring names like Maiden Tokyo, Ladybird, Miss Kitty and Tinker Belle. The Lady carrying the flag - a graphic of just that appearing near the cockpit- has also been slightly updated and the flag enlarged.

Previous Lady:

Best Shot of the New Lady:

Copyright Neil French - Airliners. net - http://cdn-www.airliners.net/aviation-photos/photos/0/3/9/1747930.jpgHere's a bit from the official Virgin press release: "The Virgin Atlantic name, previously on the front end of the fuselage is now emblazoned large across the whole of the aircraft in a fine custom drawn font. In addition, the undercarriage of the aircraft now features the new Virgin Atlantic logo in dark purple - making the aircraft more easily identifiable when taking off and landing.  The winglets are now red with the Virgin script on the inner side, visible to passengers on board the plane. The iconic, flag carrying flying lady, who appears on all Virgin Atlantic aircraft, has been rejuvenated with a subtle cosmetic makeover and enhanced detailing - now fluttering a larger Union Jack."

Apparently a special painting procedure was developed specifically for this project too. Or at least it's new to the airline industry. The process is intended to give the livery a highly reflective metallic shine. It also is pretty durable needing repainting only after a decade.

I can pretty much sum up my feelings about the redesign with these words: unnecessary and generic. It loses recognition unless it's paried with another very identifiable mark (the Virgin script / tailfin itself). I'm curious if the new logotype will run 'by itself' or not. I kind of liked the previous logotype, alterations to terminals and arms and tittles be darned. One thing is certain, I'm ready for this generic lower case sans movement to be over. And I know I'm not the only one.

Side View of New Livery:

Italian venue The Bella Vista Social Pub in Siena, Tuscany and one-name director Bante collaborated to promote their summer series of jazz concerts which is itself a celebration of Blue Note Record's 70th Anniversary. The resulting promotional piece called Hi-Fi is a wonderful bit of motion graphics and absolute timeless cool.

Most of you know about Blue Note, the preeminent postwar jazz label that published every important artist in hard bop jazz until declining in importance in the '60s and '70s. There was a particular style that the album covers had that somehow managed to capture the cool, yet moody vibe of the music with perfect type, color and composition. Under designer Reid Miles, the album covers comprise one of the more impressive and important case studies for graphic design. Miles is truly one of my favorites and although it's difficult to find out much about his life and biography - his work is thankfully everywhere. The Bella Vista Social Pub's video is as much a tribute to Miles as it is to Blue Note jazz. There is also a little historical tidbit that is quite interesting; Reid Miles wasn't a big fan of jazz and actually preferred classical music. Usually he didn't even listen the album for which has was designing which would be considered heresy today but it's hard to argue with the resulting work.

For the Bella Vista project, Director Bante (real name Stefano Tinti) re-imagines some of the more important album covers as moving pictures and manages to make them come to life. The type moves, color bounces, and the images breathe. Jazz feels as contemporary as ever and I think Miles (as well as the other Blue Note artists) would be very proud of this piece. Let's watch the video in all it's ultra too cool for school glory and then we'll compare the stills with the original album covers.

Hi-Fi For The Bella Vista Social Pub:

As you can see in the following side by side comparison the typography doesn't always match perfectly. In some cases it doesn't matter, but in a few instances I wish they were closer. There are some examples where the inexactness works even better than the original, or maybe I should say there are moments when the new version complements the spirit of the old if not to the letter. All in all it's a wonderful tribute to a an amazing time in both music and design.

A Side by Side Comparison of My Favorite Frames. (Original on the Right, Hi-Fi Still on the Left). Click on the image for a slightly larger version.

The type of the new (on the right) doesn't match perfetly that of the original (on the left) but the movement really makes this album cover shine.

You immediately know the reference if not a perfect mirror match. The color halftone treatment of the video does a nice job of honoring the cover.

This is my favorite. It really only hints at the original but somehow captures everything about it. The motion makes this new version a contemporary take on the old.

A funny example of all the elements being somehow different but as a whole manages to be a perfect reproduction. C'mon this is so cool.

Different Dog. Different Chicken. But totally an appropriate remake.

I would liked to have seen a checkered suit in the new, but the face to face type treatment makes this piece.

This is nice even though he looks more like Diddy than Herbie here.

Add some noise to the version on the left, you'd be hard pressed to guess which one came first. The backlit woman just works. You can see they changes the composition for Hi-Fi to arrange around a slightly different image but the Cooper Black ties them together.

Makes me want to update my Facebook profile pic with me next to a nice hubcap.

Futura. Black and white photography. AND a puppy? Too much. A nice tribute to the original and is there a better jazz name than Elmo Hope? I think not.

I think these hats are back in fashion and a nice condensed sans usually works too.

A classic. Updated with class. And that's a great smile don't ya think?

I think I prefer the new layout for this example. The lamp provides a nice backbone for the typography.

I might have to steal two ball-serif J's for my own brand. Love it.

This might be one where the photography of the original expressed some serious emotion that the new version lacks; but the type is a nice update and overall you are aware of the reference.

GM is set to launch the much anticipated Volt later this year and will likely sell every single one of them without needing to advertise significantly. It's not really a mass production vehicle and won't be until the line extends into other vehicles like the rumored small-cuv and smaller sedan over the next year or two. It's looking more and more likely that it will be accepted warmly, which would help the resurgent automaker.

According to the many sources, GM plans to launch the Volt in a few markets initially, New York City and Austin, TX rumored to among them and have begun to tease the product. I have posted the tease video and print ad that ran recenlty in the New York Times that will give you a taste of what's to come.

Let's Talk about the video first. Being the ultimate tease, the video shows nothing of the vehicle's exterior (or interior for that matter) and instead focuses on the driver experience driving down a beautiful curvy road. This is smart because the driving experience is somewhat unique and the short film feels appropriately optmistic. "Hey, we can keep loving our car just like we always have - it will be just a bit different." A good tone to hit. And since this might just be the best-covered automotive launch in history we've already seen enough of Volt photography. What's not to like is the copywriting.

I don't mind the line about the status quo crumbling. It's cliche and expected and somehow smaller than what this should really be but it does the job. But after that the copy falls flat into puns and trite expressions. "Breathtaking isn't it?" Meh. And campaign tagline is worse still:  "It's electrifying. And it's coming this winter." Writing is an art of nuance. One word can really make a big difference and style can set the tone of a piece not to mention an entire campaign. The copy on this teaser really feels a few decades too old to be on this piece. I know it's just a teaser. But it's a teaser for the most important product launch for one of our country's most important companies. It deserves better.

The print ad that ran in the New York Times doesn't fare much better in terms of messaging. I'll spare a more detailed review and let you do your own, but let's just say that if you do read the first line - you don't have to read the rest. You know how it's going to go. And it feels way way too boring for such a cool product. Like I said this is just a teaser but I have a lot of expectations for the marketing of this product. And with well-respected agency Goodby, Silversteain & Partners behind the work you can bet they will be pushing for a quality ad product on par with the vehicle. I just wish these market teasers felt more epic, more groundbreaking and more status-quo crumbling instead of just telling me that it is. It will be intersting to see where this all goes and to be honest I wish I were a part of this creative development. It's an important campaign.

When was the last time someone sent you a handwritten letter?  Thank you notes don’t count!

Sound of crickets……

Okay, so when was the last time someone sent you a cursive handwritten letter?

Sound of choruses of crickets…..

You’re not alone and don’t expect to get one anytime soon, especially from someone under the age of 25.

Right before our eyes, society is losing a way of communicating that many of us older folks take for granted.

It seems our fast-paced way of life has devalued learning how to write cursive. In the classroom the computer keyboard is fast replacing pen and paper. And it’s so much cooler to text and tweet.

Looking past our nostalgia for the way we did things in the 80’s is a genuine concern for our children’s decreased ability to express themselves, which seems to be directly related to the lack of cursive writing skills.

According to an October 11, 2006 article by Margaret Webb Pressler of The Washington Post:

The loss of handwriting also may be a cognitive opportunity missed. The neurological process that directs thought, through fingers, into written symbols is a highly sophisticated one. Several academic studies have found that good handwriting skills at a young age can help children express their thoughts better -- a lifelong benefit. Children who don't learn correct technique find it harder to write by hand, so they avoid it. Schools that do teach handwriting often stop after third grade -- right after kids learn cursive. By the time computers are more widely used in classrooms for writing, perhaps in fourth or fifth grade, many children already have decided they don't like to write.

This really hit home for me, a dad and an artist who teaches design at a leading liberal arts university.

My five-year-old daughter started in a Montessori school at age three. Right away, the teacher encouraged exercises that helped develop her cursive writing skills. As a result, her fine motor skills improved with other tasks like tying laces. However, now because she will be starting first grade in the public school system the same Montessori teacher has been nurturing more print letter writing because that is the preferred method there. 

Caring about my daughter and my students, I started to investigate the demise of cursive writing in our society. Here are the condensed results of what turned out to be a seven-month investigation, with some questions for you to consider.

Cursive writing is fast becoming a dinosaur in the school system...and we know what happened to them! Cursive writing is no longer a priority in an elementary teacher’s overloaded day of teaching technology and the material students need to score well on standardized tests.  Is the SAT the culprit, where we are requiring the regurgitation of information?  You can spend weeks surfing the net reading hundreds of articles about the state of our educational system and the SAT, something you can do on your own time.

What really floored me in my observations was children’s loss of joy for the act of creating, something I don’t want to happen to my daughter. The forming of shapes that create letters that then create words which are used to create communication is a fundamental act of expression. This joy of creating can also be considered a piece of their personalities that could be lost. Open loops versus tight lines surely have to have some correlation to one's personality type, right? Yet another investigation to begin.

Now let me turn to my teaching experience. The act of learning cursive handwriting has many correlations to art and design other than typographical. Most art departments in large and small universities across America have core foundation classes.  The students usually take these classes during their freshmen year in order to advance into upper level studio courses. I feel the most important of these are the drawing classes. Most students don’t like to take them because they feel they can’t “draw” well. However, they miss the bigger point about the course’s purpose. Most artists aren’t born with the tools to draw well. Drawing is primarily a learned skill that takes lots of practice and discipline. Once students become more comfortable with their ability to draw, the ideas and concepts are more forthcoming. I see it every year. The students who have the confidence in drawing are more expressive with concepts during the thumbnail sketch phases of a project. Likewise, research has shown that students who wrote in cursive during the essay portion of the SAT presented more complex expressed thoughts. 

The mechanics of drawing with your hand has a direct correlation to writing cursive letters. Both are fluid and spontaneous actions. Because it's fluid, it lends itself to intuitive mark making. It’s analogous to a stream of consciousness and uninterrupted thought processes. Logical isn’t it?

With all of my questions, I decided to contact a high school English teacher, someone on the front line in the cursive debate in the city where I live. These are her comments :

• The vast majority of my students write in print rather than cursive.
• Students complain about reading my cursive script from the board.
• The standard for a formal school manuscript seems completely illusive. Generally, students have created their own script. Many young girls like very rounded, crowded lettering, while many boys seem to prefer a smaller haphazard script.
• I predict that in the future rather than requiring something to be typed as the standard of proficiency and accomplishment, teachers will challenge students to hand write it instead.  
• I can see a hierarchy developing between those who understand the value of the handwritten note, thank you card, or letter and those who believe a text message is quite sufficient -- and maybe it is in this fast and furious and global world. 
• Students use the most expedient means for their communication, and that happens to be buttons or keys rather that the cumbersome pen and paper.
• I am concerned that my students won't be able to read their grandparents' love letters or the Constitution of the United States, but with the advances in technologies, my concern is of little import.
• What’s as equally distressing is that more and more elementary students lack creative writing/story telling skills. They employ pre-existing characters and storylines that they’ve seen in Disney movies or Nickelodeon programs.
• I also believe the quiet, meditative aspects of writing are lost on this generation. At one time the practice of forming letters beautifully was a useful and calming way to spend time and energy. It was the way my mother kept me still and content during long sermons at church.  She would give me a page on which she had written the alphabet and allow me to copy it over and over -- nice memory.  In fact, there is a written meditation practice called Japa that is merely the written repetition of a particular word or symbol page after page. That may be why young girls take such pleasure in writing the name of their boyfriends over and over again.?
• Division of class is beginning to develop. Students from more affluent homes (be it monetary or higher educational status) tend to write in cursive and are able to read it. Less fortunate students print letters and prefer the computer keyboard.

This cursive debate has much to say about the human condition. It is for you to determine if cursive writing is worth teaching. So, I leave you with my thoughts about the demise of cursive lettering. In about 50 years will future generations realize that word marks, logos like the New York Yankees and the Baltimore Orioles are actually a forgotten way of writing? 

Side note:  I am currently teaching a one week design workshop with rising seniors from affluent high schools. Five out of the nine can write cursive.

Perhaps you have seen or heard a little bit about Lebron James leaving his current team and signing with two other famous players in Miami. It was a fairly understated and subtle affair, so if you missed it that's quite understandable. To get you caught up, James was a free agent and kept everyone guessing up until the last moment as to whether he would stay with his hometown team, The Cleveland Cavaliers, or leave for any number of other teams; The New York Knicks, The Los Angeles Clippers, The Miami Heat or The New Jersey Nets. Teams had been planning for James' free agency for two even three years, saving money and dumping contracts so they'd have a shot at the star player. Free agency is a pretty standard aspect of modern professional sports. What was not standard was James sending out misinformation and then launching a one-hour special dedicated only to announce this decision. The special show that aired on ESPN on Thursday was even called The Decision, smacking of the over-hyped ridiculous self-importance that is all too prevalent in sports. It was anything but classy.

Most astute fans knew that Lebron was going to face scrutiny after the show no matter what he decided. By making a spectacle of the announcement he was causing undue problems for himself. Kurt Helin of Pro Basketball Talk said it best, "He either ends up on national television to break Cleveland's heart, or he has an hour-long special on himself to say he is going nowhere. Both options have public relations problems to deal with."

AP Photo/Mark Duncan

What is not being talked about is the effect on Nike. More specifically: Lebron James has been Nike basketball for years now, somewhat taking Jordan's place as the brand's icon. Since Lebron is leaving Cleveland for Miami, there is also the appearance that Nike is leaving Cleveland. All those images of Cleveland fans burning James' shoes and jerseys and posters and t-shirts are also images of fans burning Nike's brand. How can the discontent of millions of midwestern basketball fans not spill over onto the most visible part of Lebron James' persona, that of Nike spokesperson? Lebron has abandoned Cleveland and Nike may have as well. At least that is the common perspective on things.

When I saw the image of the We Are All Witnesses Nike billbaord featuring #23 being torn down on ESPN this morning, it became pretty clear that Nike's presence in Cleveland is being torn down as well. The fact that there has been so much backlash for how The Decision (sic) was handled, means that the actions of the sponsored has dirtied that of sponsor simply by association. I'm surprised someone in Nike's camp didn't throw themselves in front of this dumb idea for a show and prevent such bad publicity. Now they are facing the same public ire that the player is - after all, Nike was the lens through which most fans experienced James. Yes, we all witnessed what happened this week and are feeling pretty ugly about it. As a matter of fact the We Are All Witnesses campaign has become a point of parody for fans to communicate their disgust. Chants of Witness Disloyalty or Witness A Traitor can probably be heard today ringing down not just the streets of Cleveland but throughout a lot of other B-level cities in America.

Source: AP Photo/The Plain Dealer,Marvin Fong

So what is Nike to do? Do they sponsor another player that comes to Cleveland and try to fill that gap? That would be next to impossible as James cast a pretty large shadow especially since the town felt like they had raised James since high school. Does Nike just lay low and let this story die down? I feel like that is giving an opportunity to other marketers to do some timely marketing of their own. Were I Adidas or Reebok (heck And 1 or Under Armor) I would take this chance and respond in some way using clever advertising and try to endear fans (not just in Cleveland) to their brand instead.

Maybe Nike works with Lebron and does something classy, publicly thanking Cleveland fans for all that they've done for him over the years? There is a big risk of that feeling insincere, especially while Bosh, Wade and James sign contacts and dance gleefully in front of the Miami fans and a worldwide audience - which has been going on for the last two days as of this article's writing. As Rob Shuster said in ESPN's Bill Simmons' latest mailbag article: "(What Lebron did is) Like dangling an engagement ring in front of your longtime girlfriend, then getting on your knee at the bar and proposing to a girl you met last week. (We're) Completely destroyed." All of this sponsored by Nike albeit indirectly.

We've seen the risks of focusing one's brand on a single player's persona. If that player runs into trouble with the law, your brand looks bad. If it turns out that the player has a little trouble staying faithful to his wife, your brand is aligned with that. And if your star decides to stick a knife in the back of an entire region of the country in the most visible manner possible, your brand is aligned with that too. I will argue that the last scenario is by far the stickiest because it is oddly somehow less forgivable. Some will say that Lebron James is a symbol for all that is wrong with sports. Sport is now about money and economy over fans and loyalty. It's about long-term lucrative contracts over only slightly less long and barely less lucrative contracts. It's more about business and less about the game. And guess who some people are going to blame for this? The big time advertisers and Nike in this particular instance. They will be seen as part of the problem in sports and ironically that's really bad business for the brand. Will Anyone in Cleveland buy a pair of Nikes again at least without wincing like an abused dog?

Yes Lebron James left Cleveland. And he took Nike with him. Now what? This is a question I'm betting is being tossed around the halls of agency Wieden + Kennedy and in Beaverton, Oregon where Nike is headquartered.

Kraft Smile Detection OLM from Stephen Riley on Vimeo.

source: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/27/business/media/27adco.html

Two More Typical Teaser Shots:

The folks over at Ford have released teaser images for the new 2011 Ford Explorer, but instead of the norm they put a little more thought into the images. I don't need to say a whole lot about them, except that they do the job of a tease but in a way that is consistent with their brand. They tantalize but on a few more levels than a dark clinical studio shot ever could. It's a small thing, but that's what branding is all about. The small things done consistently well.

Ford Explorer 2011 Teaser Images:

We try to cover more topics than mere identity redesigns here on Graphicology, but when we feel we have a scoop we try to publish it. The last few articles were about a week or so ahead of the curve so keep reading and be one week smarter than the next guy. (Or dumber, I'm afraid it might work in that direction too, ha.)

This week 146 year-old Glasgow-based coffee merchant Matthew Algie & Co updated their look to compete with contemporary chains. Normally when an old company decides to 'update' their look bad things tend to happen. History is usually neglected. Tradition is thrown out in favor of some shiny web 2.0 mess. And it gets lampooned on design blogs everywhere. But such is not the case here—at least not entirely. Though not a waterhshed moment in design, the resulting brand is quite serviceable.

A little background from their Facebook page first: Matthew Algie was established in 1864 in Glasgow as an importer and packer of tea. Now the UK’s largest independently owned Coffee roaster, Matthew Algie pioneered the movement towards fresh espresso and ethical coffee sourcing. Chief executive Gary Nicol said the launch at this week's Caffe Culture trade exhibition in London (that this rebrand) represents the largest makeover ever undertaken in the company's history. (Source.) 

Founder, Matthew Algie via wikipedia:

Despite having a rich corporate history, Matthew Algie doesn't seem to have a rich design history and their last identity (below) is rather bland. I'm unsure—and unable to find at present—what their brand looked like before this. I'm sure it was quite different in 1864.

Old Logotype:

The new look was developed by Union Connect out of the UK and features a coffee bean for a brain inside a warm orange enclosure. It's simple and instantly communicates their positioning. When it comes to coffee, we're pretty smart. The tagline We know Coffee, is a fairly overused setup (there have been hundreds of We know (blank) taglines over the years,) and simply reiterates the icon; some would say unnecessarily. (And by some I mean me.) The color palette is appropriate—the orange set against a coffee-brown. The branding also uses a lot of negative space with bright colors implemented as highlights. Though trendy it looks nice. I do have a little bit of an issue with the type, however. I'm certainly glad they didn't go with the same anonymous sans everyone else is using. Let's all cheer that. But their choice of a retro 60's revivalist typeface does not feel right at all. I think maybe a truly hand-rendered face would have been a better option. As is, it simply draws too much attention from the stronger elements that are working. All told the typography is too much Austin Powers and not enough James Bond.

The New Combination Mark:

The initiative was more than a logo redesign. It was fairly comprehensive, involving a new look for everything from stationary to the retail interiors. You can view a temporary website that hints at what's to come. I have to say that between all the real coffee chains out there, and all the ones created by students for their portfolios, it's tough to stand out from the crowd. What this new look does is make the chain feel contemporary, but it also throws them smack in the middle of what everyone else is doing. Is the bean as brain thing totally unique? I'm betting not. It is however a very flexible design element and when used outside of the combination mark itself, shines.

Coffee Brains:

The whole project is well-executed and feels as inviting and approachable as any other coffee retailer, communicating their obvious passion for coffee. You can tell the client totally bought into the design which is also nice to see. Given the company's tradition, I would probably have pushed this further away from Dunkin Donuts territory and more into Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf turf, to use coffee-related examples. My gut is that it will work hard for them but because it lacks the design roots a 146 year-old company should have, it may itself not stand the test of time.

A Complete Redesign Project: