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You'd think for $670,000 the city could've gotten a consistent logo for its newest authority
By adamg on Wed, 09/28/2016 - 5:13pm
We're not graphic designers here at UHub (oh, don't act surprised), let alone fancy-pants "brand consultants," but we vaguely remember reading somewhere that consistency in branding is pretty important, and, well, it's now driving us nuts that the BPDA logo has two different lower-case a's in it.
Also, it seems a bit over-ambitious that the logo is supposed to represent three separate things: A lower-case p and a lower-case d, an "isometric" building AND speech balloons. Or as the BPDA puts it itself:
Our logomark is an identifying mark or symbol, designed to convey multiple meanings. In its most basic form, it is an interlocking ‘p’ and ‘d’ that describe the interconnected nature of our primary functions. It can also be interpreted as an isometric view of a building. Finally, one can view it as two speech balloons, showing the dialog that we hope to create between us and the communities of Boston.
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Comments
To be fair
They've had their collective h up their collective a for so long I'm not sure they can see the sun shine, much less a discrepancy in the font.
Spending $670k on a logo .
Spending $670k on a logo ..that money well could have gone to Boston's homeless..Anyone seem to realize there are more homeless in Boston than ever in the history of this city, guess what..sad part no one seems to give a fuck either..you wonder why cityofboston doesn't have enough money to feed and house the homeless , they are much worried about Boston redevelopment authority's branding and logo and public image , they need to keep a good impression for the wealthy folks who are buying and redeveloping high end real estate in Boston, the way things are going now with real estate development and with all the billionaires moving in from China buying up all the $100 million plus condos in downtown crossing, the city better focus more on how to cater to the homeless instead of catering to wealthy developers.
It wasn't just the logo
It was an entire re-branding "strategy" designed to make the BRA, um, BPDA seem warmer and fuzzier so we'd all just wuv it instead of fighting it every ten years when it seeks to keep its "redevelopment" control over parts of the city that may not need redevelopment anymore (like, say, the North End, which unlike its counterpart to its immediate west, was not bulldozed to let a developer put up some soulless high rises).
The best part
Was reading all the BRA members and former members congratulating each other for doing such a great job on "rebranding".
I'll bite on this
Say this agency rebrand every 10 years (technically it's every 55 years, but I'm in a generous mood.) That works out to a value on the contract of $67,000 a year. Let's also assume that the median rent during that period will be $2,000/month or $24,000/year and that condo prices will not drop below $200,000. Therefore, we could have used that money to rent less than 3 apartments or buy 3 condos for the homeless with that money.
I'm not going to say that it was money well spent, but I never like people saying that money spent on A could be used to end homelessness or rebuild bridges or schools.
I grew up in Boston and I
I grew up in Boston and I agree that the homeless situation is at a staggering point!
I was approached by a young 20 something woman who asked me for money and it was outside millennium tower, She told me she had no place to live , I asked what about Rosie's place she then told me that they are no longer taking in people . So it is quite sad to see someone that young that is homeless , and in a city with major corporate donors this is something that can't be ignored..
It cannot be unseen.
It cannot be unseen.
broken hunk of lucite.
it's all i think about when I see that logo.
Yes!
Looks like I'm just going to have to win another award for best sales performance in the tri-state region for Q4, sigh.
That there's
Some good planning.
I can't wait to see the development.
Also, why....
... all in lower-case" e.e. cummings fans, perhaps?
Who's buried in Forest Hills Cemetery
Right near one of the fastest-growing parts of the city, so, yes, obviously an homage.
But
His name on his gravestone is in all caps.
http://www.poetsgraves.co.uk/cummings.htm
seems perverse...
...doesn't it.
I wonder...
...if his third wife outlived him.
Who'se?
ah, I get it. You're trying to get A job with the Agency. Never mind.
Suldog
http://jimsuldog.blogspot.com
Typoe
Fixede.
We Know What You Think
To be a bit crude, this is the BRA's way to say "we know you think we suck".
A new name doesn't fix anything. We have to wait on whether that happens.
But it is an acknowledgment that they know the public considers the BRA to be a failed agency.
Mayor Marty
surrounds himself with the "best people", just like Drumpf.
It's like a coded message
acknowledging the secret society that operates in the shadows.
New name. New logo. Same crap
New name. New logo. Same crap underneath.
Goes without saying
"Same crap" is true of every single rebranding campaign in history.
The logo (sorry, "logomark")
The logo (sorry, "logomark") looks like what they print on signs directing your to the trash can.
What design company did they hire?
Lowest bidder? Someone's brother-in-law? It would be interesting to know the name.
Vandelay Industries
Vandelay Industries
Continuum!
Is the name.
Deplorable!
I'm sure Elmer will not be a fan of this design.
The 18 hour BRA
Well this consulting agency looks like a big boob right now for this mistake.
Flip the logo pieces in space
Make two "b"s out of them, side by side.
I hate the BRA
But... I liked their old logo. I thought the design of the letters together was clever. It effectively indicated that they were concerned with the structural elements of things and yet were rigid, cold, dated, and hard to understand without considerable effort.
So I'll miss the only thing I ever liked about the agency.
OMG
I've been looking at that logo for years, but I swear I never realized until I saw your comment that it spells out BRA! I always just thought it was some abstract design. Now, of course, I can't unsee it.
Same here
I can't believe I never noticed that before!
ditto
.
The Meme
Symbolically Broken
Terrence and Phillip approve:
The Design Guru...
Does not like that design :-(
Awesome
One letter off from BPD - Boston Police Dept.
Imagine how many Bostonians and others will make this mistake.
And the Google and Yahoo searches will also be FUBAR.
Search "BPDA." "Did you mean "BPD?" Showing results for BPD.
Yup.
Excellent.
Goes right along with that new web site where you can't find anything.
Bravo.
BPPA sues BPDA
The two groups have a lot in common; all their crimes are legal.
Also...
google searching BPDA pulls up
this:
http://bostonpostdocs.org/
and this:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BPDA
This re-branding and choice of logo and name is so beyond dumb.
Campaign promises
So that's what Walsh meant when he promised to get rid of the BRA.
Next time they can pay me or
Next time they can pay me or my 8 year old to do it....smdh
Is it concave or convex?...
Should the hole on the “a” be round... or tear-shaped? Is it a “p?” Or is it a “d?” Does it go in...or out? Up...or down?
For me, this logo CLEARLY communicates two important ideas: Don’t pay attention to “a” holes, and join in the optical confusion as we “Escher” in a new era!
It seems
That the a hole starts out somewhat small, but ends up much larger. Perhaps there is a message therein.
It looks like they don't know who or what they are
I don't know what agency was hired to do this, but they didn't help to clarify and distill the overall identity. That's where the hard work happens. It looks like it was designed by committee. Whoever they hired, they probably thought they knew better and could not stick to a single direction "Our logomark is an identifying mark or symbol, designed to convey multiple meanings." Eyeroll. A logomark conveys a precise concise message, or it fails. The result is that none of their meanings are conveyed. That and the typeface and colors are ghastly.
A turd by any other name....
...would smell so sweet?
Actually, can the Mayor change the name of the agency? It was established by State law, so shouldn't this be something that floats past the Legislature? Although if Menino could merge EDIC and BRA, I guess a Mayoral name change shouldn't be a big deal.
But if this was what Mahty was referring to when he talked about reforming the BRA on the stump, I'm deeply disappointed (and that includes following the "newBRA" web page these past months as well).
clawback
Arrest them all, and then clawback the suspicious payment.
Hate on it all you want ...
But there's nothing suspicious about the payment. The BRA and the mayor were quite open about wanting to rebrand and about hiring a design firm to do it.
The color scheme is about right
It matches the Surging Seas maps quite nicely: http://choices.climatecentral.org/#12/42.3384/-71.0405?compare=scenarios...