1) Introduction

I’ve chosen to reimagine my university logo because I find it asymmetric and with some touches it could be more appealing to the eye.

First of all, this is the original Logotype:

Deusto Business School Logotype refresh - image 1 - student project

2) Big Picture analysis: Getting started

Taking into consideration the different steps proposed for a Big Picture analysis I took some notes as can be seen in the following image:

Deusto Business School Logotype refresh - image 2 - student project

> Overall Look and Feel

It communicates Seriousness, professional look, maybe even boredom.

It’s a very stale logotype, the shield-like shape on the left reminds me of the medieval theme.

The colour blue could be reminiscent of the sea, or the river “Nervión”, which is close to the college.

The logotype will attract mostly parents looking for a familiar and recognizable entity for their children to study an MBA.

Students could be unimpressed, it’s a very plain and uninteresting logo, but the main audience are the parents.

> Sensitivity Gut Check

There are no subtle or overt points of misinterpretation nor stereotypical in a way that could offend?

> Type Hierarchy

You start reading at high volume Deusto, as it is the most emphasised word, but it’s generic. Then comes Business School in a more quitter tone, and finally Universidad de Deusto loses strength and becomes a whisper.

Removing Universidad de Deusto we can optimize hierarchy for a quicker read, as it adds little to the overall logotype and slows reading time.

> Shape

The overall shape of the logotype is rectangular, but there are 2 main empty spaces that are distracting.

> Basic Legibility

The initial D, it is confusing because of the colour white that mixes with the white background.

> Scale

The smallest size the logo will be used could be in a blinder or similar, pretty small, so it has to contain less letters and words to be able to fit.

The largest size the logo will be used could be a billboard on the side of the University.

3) Evaluating letterforms: in-depth analysis

In my in-depth analysis I established what I wanted to change without completely negating the current aesthetics of the logotype.

Deusto Business School Logotype refresh - image 3 - student project

4) Some concept ideas and variations

I used the college’s coat of arms to get inspiration and created a new logotype similar to the actual one but with a cleaner and simpler look.

Some concept ideas:

Deusto Business School Logotype refresh - image 4 - student project

Deusto Business School Logotype refresh - image 6 - student project

5) Final logotype

Before...
Deusto Business School Logotype refresh - image 7 - student project

...and after

Deusto Business School Logotype refresh - image 8 - student project Explanation:

I chose to completely erase the “Universidad de Deusto”, creating a cleaner logotype and minimizing the difference between tones.

I also took out the shield-shaped background the initial D had, which was confusing to look at, especially the borders with mixed with the white background.

I added 3 waves inspired by the coat of arms of the college with some degrading from dark to light blue to symbolise the “Nervión”, the river that flows in front of the university.

Thanks to this project I’ve been able to learn some very useful tips and methodology concepts to analyse and refresh logotypes. This made me appreciate much more all the work that goes into creating beautiful brand images.

Thanks for this amazing class!

Miguel

Miguel Ortiz de Urbina

Curious anytime & anywhere

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