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Redesigning the NBC Peacock


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There really isn't anything wrong with the current mark, except I always thought the actual bird's shape was a bit ambiguous. So I decided to toy with a new take on it that brought out the bird more:

 

lNxXqbd.png

 

With the reduction to five feathers from six, the colors needed to be reduced, so I decided to call back to the old xylophone logo's RGB pattern - and have even included an updated xylophone mark in the set (the one-color version is included for the curious):

 

xRP9Y8c.png

 

From a practical perspective, I admit I'm not a huge fan of the peacock and would much rather use something like the xylophone mark (immediately understood by most of the audience) or the "Snake" logo (visual appeal), but I know the peacock has too much equity to shove off the main stage.

 

And here is how my peacock would hold up to a glossy texture, if the client so wanted it for, say, a social media avatar (it's meant to refer to this rendering of the current mark):

 

yIllCoS.png

 

I like the geekiness of how the "living color" is now rendered in a way that more overtly alludes to the technology behind color pictures, but is it at the expense of the appeal of the peacock?

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The sharp angles of your bird contrast with the rounded feathers, and it looks a bit harsh. I also think the peacock needs more feathers, not less. With the current version, while not a perfect representation, the negative space allows most of the feathers to be seen in their entirety, With less feathers, it almost looks like a fountain or some kind of burst/explosion behind the body.

 

If you go here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Logo_of_NBC you can see the progression from 11 feathers down to six. I think six allows for better symmetry and the negative space of the implied peacock's body.

 

One other aside about the xylophone logo (not your fault, you copied NBC's): if you played the notes in the order of "N-B-C", they wouldn't be in the same order as the actual tone. The tone goes "lowest, highest, middle". But the logo goes "lowest, middle, highest".

Back-to-Back Fatal Forty Champion 2015 & 2016

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One of the issues with yours is the feathers get cut off by the peacock's body instead of finishing their curve. The original is cleaver because it uses the negative space to form the body, whereas yours it's too obvious that it's a white shape overlaid on top.

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6 hours ago, jujubeans said:

One of the issues with yours is the feathers get cut off by the peacock's body instead of finishing their curve. The original is cleaver because it uses the negative space to form the body, whereas yours it's too obvious that it's a white shape overlaid on top.

 

The original design and its 1979 incarnation (which itself has issues, pertaining mostly to how well it might shrink) did the same thing.

 

5 hours ago, sayahh said:

Looks good as a faux throwback.

 

Would it not work as the main logo?

 

I admit I have pondered having it play second fiddle to the revised xylophone, but the NBCUniversal corporate rebrand flap a few years ago showed that the peacock is held in very high esteem by the public, and so even pushing it into the supporting cast might hurt the brand.

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On 4/28/2017 at 7:55 AM, Zeus89725 said:

In all honesty, I don't really like the xylophone logo. The peacock looks great, even with only 5 feathers, but the xylophone wordmark just doesn't look good, imo. I'd cut all the letters off at the same length and just have it read 'NBC'.

 

Something like this?

 

sy3Mn4t.png

 

I'm not sure I like this. The colors have their appeal but the form is indistinct compared to the xylophone.

 

3 hours ago, BrandMooreArt said:

 

indeed. and that my friend, is design. keep at it, you're getting closer

 

Thanks for the encouraging words.

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I'm 22, so I guess I would count as a millennial, but I am a broadcasting enthusiast who's seen examples of NBC referring to the xylophone throughout their history:

 

 

 

(notice how that completely skips the Snake and the "N")

 

 

 

 

As recently as 2015, they've also sold merchandise bearing the xylophone logo.

 

4 minutes ago, NoE38 said:

I prefer the peacock logo, but I agree about the feathers. I'm interested to see if you could find a way to combine both logos into one.

 

The peacock and the xylophone as one logo?

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