slave to the rhythm?

Is this really and honestly a great piece of applied graphic design? And isn't the whole point of pictograms the fact that you don't need words to explain what the picture means? Or am I missing something here?

Comments

[Steve Mannion]

I quite like the towel!
http://shop.london2012.com/London-2012-pictogram-towel/50000510,default,pd.html

[Julie Oakley]

For a graphic designer I'm remarkably immune to pictograms. I'd much rather have words on my video recorder than all the symbols that I still don't instinctively read and understand. Having said that I cannot see myself ever feeling a sense of national pride at any of the graphic output for 2012, whether it's the logo, that typeface or the one-eyed character. I just cannot understand how this is supposed to be the best of British graphic design.

[Bojkowski]

Hi Julie: It's not supposed to be the best of British Graphic Design. It's not even meant to be about Graphic Design. The Olympic identity is loud, brash, active and, most importantly, populist.

I take more offensive at the mascots. Where a brilliant British illustrator like James Jarvis could have created something iconic and timeless we ended up with some useless 3D renders by an anonymous 'designer' born of shallow marketing gumph. At least Wolff Olins were made to stand up for the designs they had put together.