Identity Marks logos - trade marks-chops – symbols - design

J. Fagner, personal logo

Identity: who somebody is, especially the name somebody or something is known by... The set of characteristics that somebody recognizes as belonging uniquely to himself or herself

and constituting his or her individual personality for life.

Identity Mark

Elements and Principles

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Culture and heritage

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Colors, designs, and the use of particular techniques are part of a visual language with specific cultural meanings

How far would you go to mark your identity?

Everyone belongs to some kind of group, and the ways people show that belonging can be extreme.

• In Thailand, near the Burmese border, women stretch their necks with brass shackles to identify them as part of the Padaung tribe.

• In Japan, enthusiasts spend several years and thousands of dollars to tattoo their entire bodies with patterns that link them with a samurai code of honor - only to hide their marks away because of a notorious social stigma.

• Temporary decorations and body art like makeup, clothing, hairstyles are a way of signaling an individual's place in society, marking a special moment, celebrating a transition in life or simply following a fashion.

Marks Of Identity

                

Photo © William DeMichele

 

 

This photograph features Janet and tattoo artist Mike --

both of Chicago. Janet's tattoos include a "Ganesha" -- a Hindu deity who has the

power to remove obstacles -- on her arm. Mike, whose

tattoos were applied by the tattoo artist, Guy Aitchison,

states that the imagery is "his soul on the outside."

The Chinese Name Chop• Chinese Paintings display the name

chop, or signature seal, of the artist. Name chops are written in archaic characters and are illegible to the ordinary Chinese reader, requiring a special study to be read.

• They have been used on Chinese paintings and elsewhere since the Sung dynasty and play an extremely important role in the lives of the Chinese up to the present day.

• A chop mark is still required for a document to be legally binding.Chops, which were a forerunner to the invention of printing, are engraved by hand, pressed into a red ink paste made from Cinnabar and stamped onto a painting or document. Chops are generally made of jade into which an elaborate sculpture is often carved.

• Chop marks contribute to the visual appeal of the painting but chop marks themselves also constitute an independent category in fine arts. Throughout most of the Far East classes devoted to this craft are held in colleges and university departments.

Customer Satisfaction

visuallegal

Signature seal

back of above, signifying the identity marks

of the workshop of

Maestro Gerogio Andrioli

Coppa (bowl) from the workshop of Maestro Gerogio Andrioli

LIVESTOCK BRANDSBrands are one of the most interesting tools used by livestock people.  Each

brand is by necessity different than all the others and often conveys

the character of the owner.

A BRAND MAY CONSIST OF A LETTER, NUMERAL, CHARACTER, OR SYMBOL, OR A COMBINATION OF ONE

OR MORE OF ANY OR ALL OF THESEBrands are considered the trademark for the rangeland signifying

pride of ownership in livestock.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              

Brands have a language all their own.  The ability to read these symbols is referred to as "callin' the brand."

• Brands are composed of capital letters of the alphabet, numerals, pictures, and characters such as slash  /, circle  O, half-circle , cross +, _bar, etc.,  with  many combinations and adaptations.  Letters can be used singly, joined, or in combinations. 

• They can be upright, XIT  • lying down or "lazy," (lazy  S)  

• connected ( V B connected) or combined, (V B combined)

• reversed, (reverse B)  • or hanging  (V hanging S).

• Picture brands  are  usually used alone, (ladder)  or (rising sun). 

There  are  three accepted rules  for  reading  brands.  1.  Read from the left to the right as ML (M L). 2.  Read from  the top to the bottom as (bar m). 3.  When the brand is enclosed, it is read from the outside to the inside as

(circle S).

‘Trade’ Marks

What is a mark? A trademark, or

"mark," is any word, phrase, symbol, design, sound, smell, color, product configuration, group of letters or numbers, or combination of these, adopted and used by a company to identify its products or services, and distinguish them from products and services made, sold, or provided by others.

trademark or trade mark• The term trademark is also

used informally to refer to any distinguishing attribute by which an individual is readily identified, particularly the well known characteristics of celebrities.

• Such trademarks can be a style of haircut (Elvis Presley's distinctive ducktail), articles of clothing or accessories (Liberace's flamboyant costumes and jewelry or Elton John's oversized sunglasses), facial hair (Groucho Marx's mustache), etc. etc.

Artist’s marks

A remarque is a small, personalized drawing or symbol that an artist adds (near his or her signature) on a print. The presence of

a remarque increases the print's value.Originally, remarques were remarks made, in pencil, that

identified the various stages a printing plate went through while in the process of being finalized. Whistler seems to have

pioneered making remarques desirable to collectors, particularly in the case of his "butterfly" mark.

James A. McNeil WHISTLER • 1834-1903 (American)

Kensington Gardens Lithograph, signed with the butterfly, lower left.

Your Assignment: Create your own Identity Mark.

To design a creative and innovative symbol that

reflects ones heritage and current interest.

Be creative with your design:

Use the information you have gathered about yourself to help guide you.

Feel free to incorporate any or all of the following:• Cultural Background• Family/cultural values and ideas• Personal Favorites (colors, patterns, pastimes)• Religious beliefs

Incorporate designs and patterns from your heritage.

Celtic Knot work

Japanese Characters

Aboriginal Dot Patterns

Islamic Patterns

Mehndi (henna tattoos)

You can combine different qualities of yourself by combining two (or more) objects that symbolize those concepts.

This symbol shows an eye looking skyward, symbolizing forward thinking, and a monorail, symbolizing an obsession with technology.

Incorporate at least 3 elements and 2 principles into your design.

Which principles and elements can you identify in these symbols?

Combination of love and dance.

A blend of nature and technology.

Be creative, in most cases less in more.

Think about scale.

Will your image portray the same message as a letterhead that it would as a bill board?