The Symbol, the Visible Sign of Invisible Realities

The draft logo was eventually on the table. We had worked our way through the phases, discussed the strategy, done the analyses and polished the values. Both the customer and the designers in the project group felt confident that the solution was close. There were also many appreciative glances when the solution was presented to the board. However, there was a board member who remained silent during the meeting. She took the floor when the board was in the process of making its decision. - You know, she said, this reminds me of a swastika.

The interjection struck with the same precision and effect as when ink falls into a glass of water. Everything turns grey, and so does the atmosphere around the table. The sudden uncertainty in the faces spoke for itself. The claim was absurd because there was no formality or anything else reminiscent of this. However, the association was already planted, and had made its impact.

The story goes far back in time, but still tells something significant about the power of association. When the latter is strong enough, objectivity matters less. The process was about to go off track, when the board was hit by the collective anxiety about perceptions taking a wrong turn. Nobody took the significance of the swastika lightly, then as now. The swastika is an ancient symbol found in most cultures, Norse and Jewish. Originally, it stood for good luck, but was radioactively contaminated forever when the Nazis used it. The symbol was effectively recoded from being benign to representing genocide and aggression. Thousands of years of opposite values meant nothing.

Symbols have this power over the senses. We perceive them instantly, faster than the text we read. The meaning lies deep in the subconscious, where it affects how we think, feel and act. There is a lot of research on this, and the results are fascinating. According to the book "Drunk Tank Pink" by Adam Alter, the swastika influences the subjects to become rigid and aggressive themselves. It brings out the worst that exists in all of us. It is not without reason that many feel physically unwell from walking past the wrought iron gate to the old Oslo Lysverker at Solli Plass in Oslo. On the other hand, the symbol of Apple exudes positive and creative values. It influenced the subjects to become curious and exploratory. By contrast, IBM's symbol contributed more to problem-solving within given frames. Nike's swoosh reminds us of the need for movement, or rather of the bad conscience for not exercising enough.

An associatively strong symbol indicates more than a thousand words, but is this the same as a logo? The answer is both yes and no. A logo is both the symbol as an image and the logo as text. Someone interested in design would probably rather describe the logo as a trademark.

A symbol can be visualised through various basic shapes (circle, square and triangle) or as figurative illustrations. This combination can represent a lot of different interpretations. A circle can be perceived as wholeness, perfection and harmony, the square as structure, balance and solidity and the triangle as aspiration. If you are in doubt, feel free to check out the symbols of the Tax Administration, LO or NHO. Similarly, we might find that illustrations of an anchor gives us a sense of adventure and stability, while an illustration of a lion indicates power and leadership. However, all these interpretations are generic expressions of the form itself. It takes time for a newly developed symbol to coalesce with what it represents. The associations do not come by their own efforts. It takes management and actively working on which associations the symbol should bear.

So what happened to the logo draft that came into play at the board meeting? The problem was not a physical comparison with this mentioned negative symbol, but rather an attempt to code a proposal negatively with all means available. This can happen from time to time. Discussions about form and function can be anything but rational. The job, therefore, is to crumble the negative association into nothingness by decoding the origin of the claim and countering it with multiple positive associations. And not least, stick to the strategy that gave the result that was on the table.

And that is what happened.