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PyeongChang 2018 Emblem Unveiling


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I think worrisome is perhaps a step too far. I could honestly say that Salzburg, Munich or Annecy probably would have delivered a more palatable logo to our tastes (IE/ Anglophone/European sphere), but the fact that in the presentation itself they explicitly mentioned how the logo they were about to unveil was "very familiar to Korean people, and not something familiar to foreigners" or words to the effect. This is simply intercultural communication politics at play here. From all evidence, they never intended to create a logo to appeal to the rest of the world, or that screams "KOREA" like the Seoul 1988 logo did - this is by Koreans, for Koreans. I'm fine with that. Personally, PC18 isn't exactly in my Top 5 as I've made clear earlier, but I don't think, at this early EARLY stage it is the write off everyone is pronouncing it to be, nor is it reflective of any kind of issues of "passion for winter sports" in Korea.

And that's the core problem of the logo probably: If it should appeal to Koreans only, then you enlarge the image problem Pyeongchang 2018 has already (and which Athensfan mentioned). Korea has to prove something to the world - namely that the doubts raised by the bad impression the 2009 Biathlon World Championships left are unfounded and that the country is able to stage great or at least good 2018 Winter Games, also atmosphere-wise. And yet, despite that need to prove something to the world and not only to themselves, they create a logo directed only at their home audience and apparently don't care about what the international audience might think about it and whether the international audience actually understands the message behind it at first sight. And because the logo is such a central piece of communication and imagery for each Olympic Games, I think that that was a very bad decision, PR-wise. A logo of course shall and even has to convey something of the host country's culture - but it also has to have at least some positive impact internationally, because it's an international brand and not only one used for domestic purposes.

And honestly: Maybe I know too little about Korean culture - but apart from the link to the letters of the Korean alphabet, this logo expresses nothing Korean to me at all. In fact, this could also be the logo for a sports event in any other country in the world - with the generic Olympic colours, very bland and generic shapes and a very generic font for the logotype. If that is the only international message of the logo - namely "You could actually use it everywhere" -, then it's a very poor international message.

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Why?

Because otherwise, a logo would be totally exchangeable and could be used anywhere in the world. Instead, it should display in which country or even city the sports event takes place. It's part of the corporate ID, so to speak - just like elements of the local/regional/national culture are displayed at the opening ceremony.

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Because otherwise, a logo would be totally exchangeable and could be used anywhere in the world.

But that's never likely to happen, is it? Logos are trademarked and copyrighted, and exist in Olympic terms for a maximum of seven years. In fact, I'd say the fact they can be used anywhere in the world is a positive thing! The idea of spreading a message, of garnering the people across the world under one brand or logo that speaks to everyone is surely a marketers dream? Afterall, London didn't exactly 'inspire a generation' across the globe with a British-themed travel guide-type logo.

Olympic logos have wordmarks giving time and place anyway. I've always believed Olympic Games will soon move beyond the city they are hosted in, especially when in major international cities and countries that the world already knows about, and their reason for hosting the Games moves beyond a 2-week advert of the host city and into a more message based Games that has a global appeal to change, or inspire, or spread the word of a movement. A 'call to arms' so to speak. In this globalised world where people have instantaneous communication with the rest of the world people are already aware of far-flung cultures and countries. This isn't the sixties anymore when travel to another continent was seen as exotic.

The real success of the Games will be it's ability to go beyond host cities and into spreading the positive message of its reason for being on a global scale, not an endless travel monologue with some sport thrown in.

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I'd rather see it left up to the host. You've got logos like Sydney's at one end with very overt cultural references, and logos like London's at the other end with virtually none. Neither is "correct". But just because a logo has no overt cultural references doesn't mean it's "totally exchangeable and could be used anywhere in the world". Could you imagine London's logo being used for, say, Athens' Games but with the last two numbers changed to 0 and 4? Definitely not. London's logo - a logo with no real cultural references - is nevertheless tied completely to London's Games and the way London hosted them.

It's funny, because we have no problems with this concept everywhere else. Most global brands are abstract yet we don't go around saying their logos are "totally exchangeable" with one another because of this. :huh:

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But that's never likely to happen, is it? Logos are trademarked and copyrighted, and exist in Olympic terms for a maximum of seven years. In fact, I'd say the fact they can be used anywhere in the world is a positive thing! The idea of spreading a message, of garnering the people across the world under one brand or logo that speaks to everyone is surely a marketers dream? Afterall, London didn't exactly 'inspire a generation' across the globe with a British-themed travel guide-type logo.

Olympic logos have wordmarks giving time and place anyway. I've always believed Olympic Games will soon move beyond the city they are hosted in, especially when in major international cities and countries that the world already knows about, and their reason for hosting the Games moves beyond a 2-week advert of the host city and into a more message based Games that has a global appeal to change, or inspire, or spread the word of a movement. A 'call to arms' so to speak. In this globalised world where people have instantaneous communication with the rest of the world people are already aware of far-flung cultures and countries. This isn't the sixties anymore when travel to another continent was seen as exotic.

The real success of the Games will be it's ability to go beyond host cities and into spreading the positive message of its reason for being on a global scale, not an endless travel monologue with some sport thrown in.

Olympic2004 didn't mean you could actually just grab a generic Olympic logo and paste it onto you advertisement. What he means...and I agree...is that that's why cities/nations will spend up to $100 million to snag the Games, and then spend upwards of $50 billion to actually stage the Games is to show the world that you have arrived. I too look for a little host-centric touch or influence on the logo. PC2018 -- and I don't speak Korean -- is just totally DEVOID of any unique artistic merit for/to the outsider. The logo as with the Opening Ceremony must be easily identifiable with the host culture but at the same time must be easily & QUICKLY understood by an international audience without sitting thru a "This is What Our Logo Means" class. That is the tricky balance that OGs must strive to achieve.

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But that's never likely to happen, is it? Logos are trademarked and copyrighted, and exist in Olympic terms for a maximum of seven years. In fact, I'd say the fact they can be used anywhere in the world is a positive thing! The idea of spreading a message, of garnering the people across the world under one brand or logo that speaks to everyone is surely a marketers dream? Afterall, London didn't exactly 'inspire a generation' across the globe with a British-themed travel guide-type logo.

Olympic logos have wordmarks giving time and place anyway. I've always believed Olympic Games will soon move beyond the city they are hosted in, especially when in major international cities and countries that the world already knows about, and their reason for hosting the Games moves beyond a 2-week advert of the host city and into a more message based Games that has a global appeal to change, or inspire, or spread the word of a movement. A 'call to arms' so to speak. In this globalised world where people have instantaneous communication with the rest of the world people are already aware of far-flung cultures and countries. This isn't the sixties anymore when travel to another continent was seen as exotic.

The real success of the Games will be it's ability to go beyond host cities and into spreading the positive message of its reason for being on a global scale, not an endless travel monologue with some sport thrown in.

You have apparently misunderstood me. I meant that if a city like Pyeongchang creates a logo for its Olympic Games, it should actually be recognisable from the design of the logo alone (without the logotype) that the Games take place in that city or at least in Korea. That means: The logo should look genuinely Korean.

But if you do it like Pyeongchang did it and create an actually very generic logo (namely a sort of rectangle and a star), that logo doesn't express anything Korean at first sight and could as well be the logo of Tokyo 2020, Mexico City 2048 or Southampton 2236 then.

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I'd rather see it left up to the host. You've got logos like Sydney's at one end with very overt cultural references, and logos like London's at the other end with virtually none. Neither is "correct". But just because a logo has no overt cultural references doesn't mean it's "totally exchangeable and could be used anywhere in the world". Could you imagine London's logo being used for, say, Athens' Games but with the last two numbers changed to 0 and 4? Definitely not. London's logo - a logo with no real cultural references - is nevertheless tied completely to London's Games and the way London hosted them.

It's funny, because we have no problems with this concept everywhere else. Most global brands are abstract yet we don't go around saying their logos are "totally exchangeable" with one another because of this. :huh:

You're comparing apples with oranges. London's logo maybe didn't look genuinely British, but at least it was highly distinctive and bold. Also, as you said, it formed the number "2012" and therefore was inevitably linked to the London 2012 Games.

Pyeongchang's logo, on the other hand, is so simple, bland and non-descriptive (as I said, it's only some sort of rectangle and a star) that there's actually no connection at first sight to the Pyeongchang 2018 Games. Therefore you could easily use it for any other host city in the world and any other year.

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Im not so sure, have we really had that much success with regional specific logos when it comes to the Olympic Games? Surely that has moreso been the domain of the bid logo. (and a number of those have had me scratching my head - Stockholm 2004s based on a sculpture in a Swedish sculpture part, I didn't understand that for years)

Of course we have the Sydneys, Beijings and Athens of this world who have had successful logos which are quite relevant to their culture, but we've had alot that haven't been that obvious.

Barcelona's is probably one of the more trailblazing memorable logos, and while you can kind of see Spanish elements in there, Im sure you could find another handful of nations that could make that logo their own.

Is the Albertville logo any more relevant to Albertville, than this is to PC? You could argue it's more pleasing to the eye, but is that beside the point? It's a sailing boat mixed with a flame, in the French colours. Could it work equally as the logo to a Games in Copenhagen though?

I guess with some time having passed, Im not thinking the PC logo is any nicer looking, but at the same time, I can see more potential in it working as a brand.

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In some ways I see what you're saying, but this is PC. All along one of the big concerns was the lack of passion for winter sport in Korea. THEY say this logo demonstrates it, but it clearly doesn't and that's worrisome. If Salzburg had turned out something weird and non-wintry it wouldn't raise eyebrows the same way. PC really has to prove that they were the right choice and can deliver exciting Games.

In other words, you've pre-judged on who gets to do what, and what is acceptable for one isn't for the other. If Salzburg or Annecy comes up with something weird and non-wintry, they're being creative and thinking outside the box, and should be applauded for being original. But when Pyeongchang does it, that just proves they lack imagination and passion. But you're clearly not the only one who thinks this way, judging by this thread.

And some have brought up that PC has to prove to the world they were the right choice for 2018 (for bogus reasons like having to prove winter passion, etc). With people already setting different standards for what Salzburg is allowed to do but not Pyeongchang, is it any wonder the Pyeongchang committee doesn't give a rat's ass what the rest of the world thinks? As far as I'm concerned, PC doesn't have to prove itself to anyone.

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In other words, you've pre-judged on who gets to do what, and what is acceptable for one isn't for the other. If Salzburg or Annecy comes up with something weird and non-wintry, they're being creative and thinking outside the box, and should be applauded for being original. But when Pyeongchang does it, that just proves they lack imagination and passion. But you're clearly not the only one who thinks this way, judging by this thread.

And some have brought up that PC has to prove to the world they were the right choice for 2018 (for bogus reasons like having to prove winter passion, etc). With people already setting different standards for what Salzburg is allowed to do but not Pyeongchang, is it any wonder the Pyeongchang committee doesn't give a rat's ass what the rest of the world thinks? As far as I'm concerned, PC doesn't have to prove itself to anyone.

Not at all. Any host can unveil any logo they like.

What I'm saying is that when a country is already a well-established winter sports power known for hosting excellent international competition in winter sports, their capability is not in question.

Korea is not a winter sports power and they are not known for hosting excellent international competition in winter sports. This logo does not help rebrand them in a way that addresses those issues.

And yes, I think PC absolutely has to prove that they can stage smooth Winter Games with enthusiastic, knowledgeable crowds. That's a question mark.

I expect them to rise to the challenge, but, for the time being, it remains a question mark.

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I've just belatedly realised that, for all its artistic problems, the London 2012 logo got away with a well-calculated gamble.

By emphasising time and almost ignoring place, it acknowledged that the Olympics are a world event, seen by billions in the comfort of their own homes. The dimension of place was ultimately created by London itself, one of the planet's best-known cityscapes (a trick that few potential winter Olympic host cities could hope to match).

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I've just belatedly realised that, for all its artistic problems, the London 2012 logo got away with a well-calculated gamble.

By the way, what led me to the above realisation was a Durban Sandshark binge I indulged in yesterday evening. Seeing the way the event was promoted and presented around the world is fascinating and enlightening- thanks D.S.!

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  • 2 weeks later...

After a computer crash that had me off my desktop for a few weeks, I was finally able to look at the logo.

It's fitting. That line cluster on the top right must be representing a bunch of missiles coming from the north...

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  • 6 months later...

Sorry for the bump, but I felt I had something to add to the conversation here. :P

To me, the logo reminds me of google's a lot. For example, the colors are both very similar.

dezeen_Google-logo_1sq.jpgpyeongchang_2018_logo_detail.gif

But it's not just the colors and logos that make me think of Google, take for example this screenshot from the video:

VJMM8Rn.png

And compare it to an image of Google's many product logos:

Google_Product_Logos.pnggoogle_drive_logo_3963.png

Do you see what I mean?

To finish, I leave you with the unveiling of the Para logo.

The video is very sloppily done. And the logo it presented is just as bad. The Olympic logo looked at the very least, polished, whereas the Paralympic logo just conveys the overdone idea of "friendship." It's very generic.

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  • 1 month later...
  • 4 weeks later...

I saw on ebay a set of square pins in yellow, white, and green.
It looks nice in a round or square and works with different color backgrounds.

I like the look.

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