The issue of copyright infringement is rarely discussed by creatives until a copyright has been infringed upon. The images above display a recent issue involving the Woolies brand and musician Joy Jones. Woolies had commissioned the custom drafted logotype prior to the 2008 release of the 12″ single The Joy/This Too Shall Pass. Under U.S. copyright law, exclusive rights to any work of creative expression are owned by the author at the moment of creation. The question remains is the Joy Jones logo an infringement of copyright.
Since both logos are at their core illustrations, one must assess if there are identifiable components that make the two strikingly similar (Exhibit: A). Each of us have formed our personal opinions in the matter, now we want to hear what you think. Using the poll below give us your opinion.
If you’re working on a new logo, you’d be hard pressed to find a better reference than the new Marks book from Pentagram. This one will no doubt be on the shelf of every Designer and Ad Agency by the end of the year. Available from Amazon for $40.
When we walked into the grocery store a few weeks back and saw that Pepsi had new labels and a new logo we raised ourselves an eyebrow and moved on. Over the next week we chuckled to ourselves as we saw Sierra Mist, Tropicana, and several other Pepsi brands had received a similar (ahem) makeover.
But after we saw the BREATHTAKING Design Strategy guide the Arnell Group did to explain the new Pepsi logo we just about fell over and giggled ourselves to death. Kudos to the Arnell for being able to sell such a tremendous farce to to Pepsi Co. Just curious, did you have your interns put this thing together the night before your presentation or what? You guys have some serious Jedi mind trick shit going on if Pepsi paid a million for this with a smile.
For those of you who’ve never pitched a rebrand, it’s fairly common to show a new logo to a client photoshopped on to a product, the side of a delivery van, or on a billboard. It’s also fairly routine to show previous generations of the logo with your proposed one at the end to show the evolution of the brand.
But this? THIS IS COMEDY GOLD! It compares Pespi’s logo to the gravitational field of the Earth, the Mona Lisa, and The Parthenon. It’s the advertising equivalent of ousted Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich comparing his struggle to Nelson Mandela and Ghandi.
Apparently we weren’t the only ones who found this amusing, as someone was kind enough to upload it and pass it around for all to share. If you’d like to view the hilarity for yourself you can download it form the links below-
An uncut and unedited interview with Steve Jobs about his experience working with Paul Rand while developing the logo for Next. It is as interesting to watch Steve Jobs answer the questions as it is to learn about the graphic design giant. Read the rest of this entry »
