Kennesaw State Owls Identity Project

[Brave-Bird 08]

My last NBA concept had me in a pickle b/c I wanted to design an original logo. I tried, and did bad. So, I went into the logo designing tutorial thread, and began to work on the recent task--animals.

I figured I would do an Owl, the mascot of my school, Kennesaw State. I came up with this, and have decided that I will try to make a legitimate run at doing a rebranding for them. I could send it in, they probably wouldnt take it, but everyone on campus agrees our logos suck...and now that we are a D1 School we need to look like one.

For starters, here is their current marks, and some information to help for the unfamiliar.

current primary--

"Scrappy" logo, used around campus on alot of things--

and the official script--

---------------

Kennesaw's merchandise mostly uses the circle logo and a "KS" script, which was originally made for the baseball team. The Scrappy logo is way outdated, and speaks of the school's Junior College days...something they need to get away from. The school now has 24,000 students, the third largest in GA, and is D1 in all athletics.

The script logo uses the silluoute of Kennesaw Mountain, which is a double mounded mountain that dominates the hilly skylines of the Marietta/Kennesaw area.

----so here is what I did. I combined a new Owl logo with the Kennesaw Mountain look. The school says on their website that they chose an owl because it is feirce but dignified...well the logo makes it look like a wimp. I modeled the logo I made after the two Owl statues that sit on the main entrance wall on campus.

This is just the primary logo, Version 1--many updates will follow--but for now, I want to get some feedback. I know this needs some stroke attention, I've had trouble with spacing the objects...and I need to create an original script.

Hope you like it, and can give some good pointers.

[raysox]

Fantastic job on that. The yellow outline ending on the back hill is kinda bothering me, and how the outlines aren't even on the hills. But the owl looks great.

[CJworks]

I think you should use the mountains based on the official script, because at first i didn't know whether or not it was a hat or some sort of mountain. Th perspective on the owl is also off a little bit, but other than that, excellent start.

[aawagner011]

Woah, I'm actually a current KSU student, so this is cool to see. I like what you have done, but at the moment, I think it is too cartoony. It is nicely illustrated, but I am not sure it captures the college vibes. It comes off as a minor league team or something. I'd also like to see the wordmark in the logo feature Kennesaw State (as that's our full name), rather than just Kennesaw. I wonder if you could do something with the KS baseball logo? I think that is the best one we have. Overall good work, but I suppose as a student, it feels slightly strange. Of course, its better than I could do myself, so I give you major props for that!

[Brave-Bird 08]

Woah, I'm actually a current KSU student, so this is cool to see. I like what you have done, but at the moment, I think it is too cartoony. It is nicely illustrated, but I am not sure it captures the college vibes. It comes off as a minor league team or something. I'd also like to see the wordmark in the logo feature Kennesaw State (as that's our full name), rather than just Kennesaw. I wonder if you could do something with the KS baseball logo? I think that is the best one we have. Overall good work, but I suppose as a student, it feels slightly strange. Of course, its better than I could do myself, so I give you major props for that!

KSU Student? nice! The style of this logo, in response to the "cartoony"ness...is based on the streamlined logos a lot of smaller D1 schools use...for instance, Cal Riverside, Baylor, Wright State, Oregon State's, etc. Take a look through the logos on the mother site and you will see..but I feel you, some schools like simple iconic logos...

which is why I'm going to get the "KS" baseball logo, and an updated circle logo as alternates. You are right, I prolly should put "State" in there too. I went by the fact ESPN refers to us as Kennesaw, not Kennesaw State...kind of like they call Troy Troy, instead of Troy State

[aawagner011]

Woah, I'm actually a current KSU student, so this is cool to see. I like what you have done, but at the moment, I think it is too cartoony. It is nicely illustrated, but I am not sure it captures the college vibes. It comes off as a minor league team or something. I'd also like to see the wordmark in the logo feature Kennesaw State (as that's our full name), rather than just Kennesaw. I wonder if you could do something with the KS baseball logo? I think that is the best one we have. Overall good work, but I suppose as a student, it feels slightly strange. Of course, its better than I could do myself, so I give you major props for that!

KSU Student? nice! The style of this logo, in response to the "cartoony"ness...is based on the streamlined logos a lot of smaller D1 schools use...for instance, Cal Riverside, Baylor, Wright State, Oregon State's, etc. Take a look through the logos on the mother site and you will see..but I feel you, some schools like simple iconic logos...

which is why I'm going to get the "KS" baseball logo, and an updated circle logo as alternates. You are right, I prolly should put "State" in there too. I went by the fact ESPN refers to us as Kennesaw, not Kennesaw State...kind of like they call Troy Troy, instead of Troy State

Yeah dude! At least for the time being. I'm planning to transfer into Georgia spring semester. I understand your approach better now, so that makes sense. That KS logo is class, I really like the look of that one. I liked it so much, I had to snag one of the Under Armour hats with it haha... I know why people call us Kennesaw and not Kennesaw State- the fact there isn't another Kennesaw school, but in a way, it sort of bothers me. Its hard to explain, but I see it if people just started calling Boise State, Boise. I can't wait to see what else you've got for KSU though! I might have to throw in my ideas as well. I don't have illustrator, but I might be able to throw some stuff together in PS.

[Brave-Bird 08]

Woah, I'm actually a current KSU student, so this is cool to see. I like what you have done, but at the moment, I think it is too cartoony. It is nicely illustrated, but I am not sure it captures the college vibes. It comes off as a minor league team or something. I'd also like to see the wordmark in the logo feature Kennesaw State (as that's our full name), rather than just Kennesaw. I wonder if you could do something with the KS baseball logo? I think that is the best one we have. Overall good work, but I suppose as a student, it feels slightly strange. Of course, its better than I could do myself, so I give you major props for that!

KSU Student? nice! The style of this logo, in response to the "cartoony"ness...is based on the streamlined logos a lot of smaller D1 schools use...for instance, Cal Riverside, Baylor, Wright State, Oregon State's, etc. Take a look through the logos on the mother site and you will see..but I feel you, some schools like simple iconic logos...

which is why I'm going to get the "KS" baseball logo, and an updated circle logo as alternates. You are right, I prolly should put "State" in there too. I went by the fact ESPN refers to us as Kennesaw, not Kennesaw State...kind of like they call Troy Troy, instead of Troy State

Yeah dude! At least for the time being. I'm planning to transfer into Georgia spring semester. I understand your approach better now, so that makes sense. That KS logo is class, I really like the look of that one. I liked it so much, I had to snag one of the Under Armour hats with it haha... I know why people call us Kennesaw and not Kennesaw State- the fact there isn't another Kennesaw school, but in a way, it sort of bothers me. Its hard to explain, but I see it if people just started calling Boise State, Boise. I can't wait to see what else you've got for KSU though! I might have to throw in my ideas as well. I don't have illustrator, but I might be able to throw some stuff together in PS.

I dont even use illustrator, just inkscape. it's free...but takes a LONG time to learn how to use, haha. I agree the "KS" logo is great...I have a hat too (but it's The Game, not UA, so it cost me fifteen bucks less). It just looks like everyone is walking around with baseball caps on b/c the school is too stubborn to put the Owl on hats.

Also, have you noticed the "eyes" logo around campus? the rectangle with the owl eyes on it? that was the best they had for an update? peesh

[aawagner011]

Woah, I'm actually a current KSU student, so this is cool to see. I like what you have done, but at the moment, I think it is too cartoony. It is nicely illustrated, but I am not sure it captures the college vibes. It comes off as a minor league team or something. I'd also like to see the wordmark in the logo feature Kennesaw State (as that's our full name), rather than just Kennesaw. I wonder if you could do something with the KS baseball logo? I think that is the best one we have. Overall good work, but I suppose as a student, it feels slightly strange. Of course, its better than I could do myself, so I give you major props for that!

KSU Student? nice! The style of this logo, in response to the "cartoony"ness...is based on the streamlined logos a lot of smaller D1 schools use...for instance, Cal Riverside, Baylor, Wright State, Oregon State's, etc. Take a look through the logos on the mother site and you will see..but I feel you, some schools like simple iconic logos...

which is why I'm going to get the "KS" baseball logo, and an updated circle logo as alternates. You are right, I prolly should put "State" in there too. I went by the fact ESPN refers to us as Kennesaw, not Kennesaw State...kind of like they call Troy Troy, instead of Troy State

Yeah dude! At least for the time being. I'm planning to transfer into Georgia spring semester. I understand your approach better now, so that makes sense. That KS logo is class, I really like the look of that one. I liked it so much, I had to snag one of the Under Armour hats with it haha... I know why people call us Kennesaw and not Kennesaw State- the fact there isn't another Kennesaw school, but in a way, it sort of bothers me. Its hard to explain, but I see it if people just started calling Boise State, Boise. I can't wait to see what else you've got for KSU though! I might have to throw in my ideas as well. I don't have illustrator, but I might be able to throw some stuff together in PS.

I dont even use illustrator, just inkscape. it's free...but takes a LONG time to learn how to use, haha. I agree the "KS" logo is great...I have a hat too (but it's The Game, not UA, so it cost me fifteen bucks less). It just looks like everyone is walking around with baseball caps on b/c the school is too stubborn to put the Owl on hats.

Also, have you noticed the "eyes" logo around campus? the rectangle with the owl eyes on it? that was the best they had for an update? peesh

Arghh I tried inkscape, but my computer got messed up and corrupted the program! I actually like the eyes logo. I think it looks good when used in certain locations (such as the back of a hat), but I could see where its use would look awkward. If it was on the front of a shirt, it would look really strange.

I want to see the KS logo on the football helmets whenever we get a team. I think that's the logo we need to go with to build our identity.

[Brave-Bird 08]

Version 2.0

-I fixed the wing area, and filled the negative space, aka the chin

[dgnmrwrw]

I think it's a pretty good start. However, two issues are standing out to me. First, the way you're using the white highlights on the yellow shapes gives everything a shiny look, almost as if this is an owl made of solid gold. I'd recommend being more liberal with your use of black and more conservative with the yellow, while also reworking the white highlights--maybe have them abut the black regions so that they aren't completely surrounded by yellow.

Secondly, there's no real consistency to the black "strokes" on the owl. Some are very thick, some very thin, and they seem to flow from thin to thick and vise versa without reason. And that's creating some strange interactions, i.e. around the left eye and right ear.

Good luck on continuing this.

[agentrygraphics]

Brave - above the space between the "S" and "A" in Kennesaw...at the base of the mountain there is a "curl". What is that supposed to be? Is it a part of the mountain?

The owl is beautiful. Excellent job!

[Brave-Bird 08]

Brave - above the space between the "S" and "A" in Kennesaw...at the base of the mountain there is a "curl". What is that supposed to be? Is it a part of the mountain?

The owl is beautiful. Excellent job!

That line is just an abstraction of the line that cuts into the hills logo on the official school script, posted above. the black negative space between the strokes and the mountains makes that line look different. I actually liked it, but a couple of people are pointing it out as a tad awkward.

Thanks for all of the feedback. I'm currently in the process of making an original script, and making a "circle" logo and "KS" logo that incorporate my style. Should take a few days.

[Brave-Bird 08]

Here is a tiny little Easter update. I gave the Owl some finishing touches. I also really like the look of the script, but if you had not already noticed it's the script the Philadelphia Eagles use for their nameplates.

(question: Are those nameplate scripts trademarks? Could this script stay on the logo in a legitimate situation, or would a quick lawsuit be at hand?)

Here is the logo in the school's primary colors (gold and black), along with a hint of green to make the logo's detail show a bit (green for mountains). The other one is just a metallic version. (the school uses metallic gold on some of their merchandise, as opposed to old gold).

[BBTV]

Nice work with this. I think you could improve the wings though, by adding some shading to the feathers. Right now, they don't look like they've been treated with the same level of detail as the belly and the face / beak. Not too much, just a little thickening of the black here and there.

Also, if the font is proprietary, then yeah - you'd probably get in trouble. that being said, it's not that unique of a font to where you couldn't simply develop your own that would get the job done without infringing on any of the unique points that might be TMd. I'd imagine that it's a proprietary font, but I have no idea (nor am I a lawyer, so I don't know about anything that I just typed.)

[Brave-Bird 08]

Nice work with this. I think you could improve the wings though, by adding some shading to the feathers. Right now, they don't look like they've been treated with the same level of detail as the belly and the face / beak. Not too much, just a little thickening of the black here and there.

Also, if the font is proprietary, then yeah - you'd probably get in trouble. that being said, it's not that unique of a font to where you couldn't simply develop your own that would get the job done without infringing on any of the unique points that might be TMd. I'd imagine that it's a proprietary font, but I have no idea (nor am I a lawyer, so I don't know about anything that I just typed.)

Yeah. The next step in my designing skills is making good fonts. I've been working on an original for the past couple of days, but I felt like the specific Eagles font I used is a great progression from KSU's current "Kennesaw State University" script.

I'll see if I can't detail the wings a bit more.

[illwauk]

Woah, I'm actually a current KSU student, so this is cool to see. I like what you have done, but at the moment, I think it is too cartoony. It is nicely illustrated, but I am not sure it captures the college vibes. It comes off as a minor league team or something. I'd also like to see the wordmark in the logo feature Kennesaw State (as that's our full name), rather than just Kennesaw. I wonder if you could do something with the KS baseball logo? I think that is the best one we have. Overall good work, but I suppose as a student, it feels slightly strange. Of course, its better than I could do myself, so I give you major props for that!

KSU Student? nice! The style of this logo, in response to the "cartoony"ness...is based on the streamlined logos a lot of smaller D1 schools use...for instance, Cal Riverside, Baylor, Wright State, Oregon State's, etc. Take a look through the logos on the mother site and you will see..but I feel you, some schools like simple iconic logos...

which is why I'm going to get the "KS" baseball logo, and an updated circle logo as alternates. You are right, I prolly should put "State" in there too. I went by the fact ESPN refers to us as Kennesaw, not Kennesaw State...kind of like they call Troy Troy, instead of Troy State

Call it me, but there's three things that SCREAM "mid-major"

-Having a hyphen in your name (i.e. Alabama-Birmingham, Nevada-Las Vegas)

-Having a direction in your name when said direction is not part of the state you represent (South Florida, East Carolina)

-Being a "State" that isn't actually a state (Boise State, Kennesaw State)

This is why the schools from the first two examples almost exclusively refer to themselves by their initials (UAB, UNLV, USF and ECU) and why Boise State often refers to itself as "Boise." That said... I think branding the school as "Kennesaw" is definitely preferable to "Kennesaw State." It's a good thing that ESPN is already referring to it only as Kennesaw... it took years to get them to refer to my school as "Milwaukee" rather than "Wisconsin-Milwaukee" (which no one affiliated with the school calls it).

[BBTV]

There's probably a lot of schools that are "State" without actually being "State", it's just that they don't include the "State" part of their name except when it's absolutely necessary.

[KCScout76]

Very good work - awesome update and they should be proud to use the logo if they do.

You are very talented, nice work!!! #7 is the best, I like the use of the 'yellow' gold vs Vegas Gold.

[Frenchie]

NICE work!!!!

The main part of the owl is great. As mentioned I would work slightly on the wings, not too much on adding details because it will take away from the cartoony effect, which I like, but more on the length.

I'm not a specialist on birds, but from this angle, it looks to me like the wing would be to long, and maybe too slim.

As for colour, stick with OLD GOLD, and make sure it is the same shade as the original colour, it looked to me as if it were slightly different to the "mountain" in the script logo.

GREAT WORK!

[Brave-Bird 08]

Almost there! I did some detailing with shading, fixed the logo so that the Owl didn't look so fat (squeezed it a bit), and also made a script. I can't decide if I like this script, or if I want to stylize it a bit more, or a lot more.