If you are a regular reader of Silo Creativo you know that from time to time we like to look at the past in search of inspiration. There are even those who say that in design everything is invented and that it is only necessary to rediscover it. Whether or not it is true, resources like the one we bring you today are sure to help your creative minds to oxygenate a little and maybe find that point or detail necessary for the project that we are starting.
In this case, we are talking about Canada Modern, a digital (although also physical) file about the graphic design between 1960 and 1985 where we can find logos, editorial design or fonts, but also interesting biographies and articles about this period.
Designing a Canadian identity and the Montreal Olympic Games
The election of this period is not accidental, since it includes some important years of the history of the country, such as 1967 (Centennial of Canada and Montreal Expo) and 1976 (Montreal Olympic Games.) The construction of the identity and its manifestation in the eyes of the world is understood through the designs of these years.
Some interesting examples that we have found of logo design:
With regard to the logo of the Montreal Olympics of 1976, its designer George Huel declared that it was a very simple form extending the Olympic rings to form an M (from Montreal,) and he found curious that nobody proposed it in the previous editions (Mexico 68 Munich 72.)
It is also interesting the collection of discarded designs for the logo of the Exhibition.
Also some examples of editorial design and album covers, like this one for the Olympic Games:
As you have probably seen, these are designs that have aged very well and that bear many similarities with some current designs.
Inspired by the past to design the future
Recently we talked about the approach between editorial design and web design thanks to CSS Grid, and about how the whole history of the first field (editorial design) could serve as inspiration for web design in the construction of layouts in the coming years. In fact there are already some interesting examples built with CSS Grid that remind us of those magazine designs and book covers.
Therefore, whatever your area of design, it is always advisable to take a critical look at the past trying to understand the environment and the moment in which the pieces were designed to understand their meaning and get a good dose of inspiration, which never hurts !
I hope this resource has served you. 😉
