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Graphic design is all around us. From newspapers, menus and road signs through to advertising hoardings, websites and television. Even if you are not in the business, you will be aware of the huge influence design has upon us. There are however some interesting facts that most people are not aware of when it comes to graphic design. The following are 10 graphic design facts that you probably never knew. (…Unless you know otherwise of course!) |
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1. The first ever logos were created by the Egyptians The Egyptians developed a form of hieroglyphic to brand their domestic animals as proof of ownership. This was considered to be the first ever form of logo design. |
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2. The word ‘Logo’ is Greek The word ‘logo’ is derived from the Greek word ‘logos’ meaning ‘word’. The Greeks relied heavily on logos which were used in concealed messages as a form of code. |
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3. The Nike logo cost just $35 The iconic Nike Swoosh logo was designed by a graphic design student named Carolyn Davidson in 1971 for just $35. The Swoosh resembles a wing and refers to Nike, the Greek goddess of victory. Fortunately, the story doesn’t end there. When Nike went public in 1983, Carolyn was given 500 shares of Nike stock which are now reportedly worth over $1 million. |
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4. The most hated font is Comic Sans Comic Sans was introduced as a default Microsoft font in 1996. The font was designed by Microsoft designer Vincent Connare and was based on the lettering style of comic books he had in his office. Due to its overuse & inappropriateness for formal documents it was largely criticised by designers and soon became the epitome of what NOT to use as a typeface. However, it has since been used to grab attention. When the discovery of Higgs Boson was announced, the spokesperson used Comic Sans in her presentation to attract media attention when the results were shown. |
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5. The first logo ever trademarked was for Bass Brewery On 1 January 1876, the new Trade Marks Registration Act came into effect. In the late hours of the previous evening, an employee of Bass Brewery’s was sent to queue outside the registrar’s office to be the first to take advantage of the new legislation. As a result, the distinctive Bass red triangle logo is now Britain’s oldest trademark. |
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6. The term ‘Graphic Designer’ was created in 1922 Book designer William Addison Dwiggins was credited with coining the term ‘graphic designer’ in 1922 to describe his various activities in printed communications like book design, illustration, typography and lettering. |
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7. Look closely at the Amazon logo Most people when looking at the Amazon logo see a smile like arrow underneath the word Amazon. It looks like it is hinting towards a happy customer experience, but if you look closely the arrow actually points from the ‘a’ to the ‘z’ relating to the fact that on their retail site you can find anything from a to z. |
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8. Alien heads found in Georgia The font ‘Georgia’ was designed in 1993 by Matthew Carter for Microsoft. It was named ‘Georgia’ after a tabloid heading which stated, ‘Alien head found in Georgia’. |
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9. Two C’s in Coca Cola Most products are named first, with the branding and marketing to follow. However, when Coca Cola was created in 1885 by John Stith Pemberton, his bookkeeper Frank Robinson suggested changing the word ‘Kola’ to ‘Cola’ as he thought that having two C’s in the name would look better in the advertising. |
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10. The first website went live 29 years ago The first website was created by 60- |
