Pictograms are often used to instruct, however another use for pictograms is for sport categories, especially in the Olympics. Due to the amount of Nationalities that attend the Olympics, it's important that the pictograms are consistent and internationally recognisable. Using pictograms is a useful tool for this guiding and informing international athletes and tourists, avoiding the language barrier.
Munich 1972
Otl Aicher
Simple, geometric shapes make it easy to interpret and read on different scales which is appropriate for signage inside the stadium or campus. The contrast of colour, along with the circle being representational of a head, reflect an iconic action from the sport to make it recognisable. Keeping the same line width and simplifying the human form creates a unisex pictogram which is successful, especially as the attention to gender in sport is becoming prominent. Aicher has thought about the angle of limbs in order to portray movement.
To create these pictograms, Aicher uses a grid system:
Aids accuracy for width of line and angles to create consistent compositions.
London 2012
SomeOne
Interesting to see the style is still similar to Aicher from 1972 as it is a simplified body form, showing a recognisable action for each sport. Instead of consistent line, SomeOne has created an angular line to emphasise proportion, perspective and which ultimately portrays more movement. Seb Coe explains the purpose for the pictograms during and before the London Olympic Games.
'The pictograms will be a vital wayfinder for spectators at Games-time and will become recognisable come 2012, but by unveiling them now we have a fantastic opportunity to use them as a tool for people to find out more about the Olympic sports.'
These dynamic versions of the pictograms were developed for banners and decoration throughout the athletes village and inside stadiums. Supposedly they were inspired by the London Underground map.
Using the extended lines clearly resemble the London Underground map and it has been conceptually adapted for an objective purpose. Putting the pictograms on the floor of the stadium and campus created an ingenious wayfinding tool for the visitors, guiding them constantly through the park with the coloured line.
My Pictograms
High jump:
Initial Sketches
Using Aicher's 45' grid system was useful for planning out geometric shapes and keeping the stroke equal. Sketching preliminary ideas is very time efficient which allowed me to progress faster. I wanted to capture the flexibility and strength of a high jumper, specifically the arched back and flow when jumping. I was influenced a lot by Aicher and SomeOne's pictograms due to the simplified form and angular line to suggest movement.
Made the right food smaller to put it in proportion. Used Illustrator to finalise my pictogram because it was accurate, quick and allows me to save multiple versions.
Hammer Throw
Used the same concept but created curvaceous shapes to resemble the powerful figure of the athlete. The curved lines suggest stability and balance because they can slot together like a puzzle.
Created by unknown source, however I really like the simplicity of the figure due to the consistent line which is very similar to Aicher's style. The parallel diagonal line that resemble the arms and upper leg suggest tension and movement that the thrower is going through. However, due to the hammer being so long, it could be hard to fit it on signage, along with other information.
Noticed the shape was similar to when pole vaulter's are executing a jump so I put the same composition in a different context:
Suggests pole vault, however I think the London 2012 style would be more appropriate because it's an explosive and acrobatic movement. The angular line would suggest movement and therefor emphasises the agility of the athletes.
Atlanta 1996
Malcom Grear
The clearly marked muscle structure create accurate representations of the human form and the agility and strength required for each sport.
Hurdles
To replicate Grear's style, I traced around an athlete doing hurdles from head on. I wanted to separate the iconic athletics vest from the rest of the body because it is associated with athletics and draws attention. Like Grear, I aimed for an accurate representation of the figure, however I avoided used curved lines so that the geometric limbs and angles. I didn't spend a lot of time making sure I traced it exactly as the original image because I wanted to make the pictogram emotive and expressional.
Realised that wayfinding pictograms, specifically for the Oympics, need to be unisex which is why the simplified forms from Aicher and SomeOne are more appropriate because there is no classification of gender. The circular head is also very neutral and doesn't suggest a specific gender.
Feedback
consider;
Audience
Scale
Contrast
Impact
Clarity
Asked for feedback about my different style for each sport to see which elements were successful and what needs improving.
High Jump
I was worried the figure didn't reflect the dynamic bend of the back but the addition of the bar put the figure into perspective. People thought making the bar grey was successful otherwise there could be too many separate shapes to process. It was suggested that I reduced the amount of separate shapes but I think this allows the angle of the figure to be visually transferred. Having the shape of the iconic athletics vest was successful because it makes the sport recognisable. The pictogram needs to be recognisable on a small scale in order to fit on small maps and signage
Think about CONTEXT
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