Saturday
Sep142013
0574: Stadium Threads, Chicago
Saturday · Sep 14 · 2013 | 9:00 AM PDT
The presentation may leave a little to be desired, but take a look at the actual designs. Jamie Robertson's proposal for the Chicago-based Stadium Series game is kind of interesting. (Though I know at least one Penguins fan who's about to go off in the comments!) What I find interesting is the looks from two completely different eras — not to mention a Hawks jersey that's out of thin air. This one may be a little out there but it certainly caught my eye.
Reader Comments (16)
OHMYGOSH YES! I see that Pens logo, instant 5 stars. <3 Just so much yes yes YEEEEEES.
Okay, give me a sec here. :D
...okay, I'm done. Aaaanywho. Love the Pens jersey, immediately reminiscent of the white sweater they used with that logo from '92-'02. Just beautiful, though the lack of the triangle yolk they had is kinda disappointing; yet the more I look at this, it seems to be a tribute to different Pens jersey eras. The number font is certainly reminiscent of their inaugural year. Other than that, it seems mostly dedicated to the aforementioned jersey. Just the triangle yoke would make me even happier, though a jersey with that logo on it and a decent design around it is good enough for me.
And now, the Hawks jersey. I think it would look nice if it was red, not maroon, but the concept is pretty nice, taking nods from one of their earlier designs and combining it with their classic colors and striping pattern, and not to mention one of their ancient logos. Like I said, just swap out maroon for red, and you have an a really great jersey.
Combining jersey elements from the past like these two jerseys is something I can definitely see teams doing in the future. It's a nice concept that can turn out great, if used well like these.
As for the Stadium series, I'm guessing you all know by now I'm crossing my fingers that the Pens revive that logo, and hopefully one of the jerseys from those years, and bring back as a permanent alternate, or heck, make a home/road set for the logo! <3
Edit: And I just realized the collar on the Pens' sweater. It seems to be taking inspiration from the mid 80's. That is all.
The PIGEON logo is dead and buried, leave it that way!!
There he is!
Thanks Chris! I do it out of LOVE for my team....lol!
I know you do. And it's funny but every time I see that old logo now I immediately think of your reaction to it.
I'd love that Blackhawks jersey if the red was a little brighter. It doesn't necessarily have to be the bright red that the Hawks currently wear, but right now it's a little too muted for my taste. Love the logo and overall design, though.
As for the Pens jersey, I'm not as passionate about it as 91PENS92, but I'd prefer not to see the "pigeon" return, either. I'm hoping for a more early-Lemieux/Jagr look than that.
Oh, I thought you were talking about me. Well that's a let down, haha. :P
And PensFan, something wrong with that work of art? lol :P
As a Hawks fan I'd buy that jersey in a heart beat, but I'd add the tomahawk logo !
@ Nascar, its the whole PIGEON/ROBO/CORPORATE logo and what it represents to me/to alot of looooong time Pens fans. I know we were the minority (cause after Back to Back Cup wins alot of "fans" came outta the woodwork, if the logo was changed to a piece of sheet, the noobs woulda still bought it up like it was goin outta style) but there was a small contingent of us die hard Pens fans that actually protested the logo change (hand written letters to Mr Baldwin). Kinda like the die hard Islanders fans that protested the Fisherman logo. Fisherman logo lasted what 2yrs? Bladwin had a chance at a NEW Arena (then Pgh Mayor Tom Murphy had offered Baldwin a NEW multi purpose Arena, way before the IRATES got PNC Park and way before dem Stillers got Heinz Field...murphys reasoning was that a multi purpose Arena would be used 200 + days a year as opposed to 81=Baseball and 8=Football....Baldwin turned it down...wtf who does that?? Baldwin instead elected to take some money and get a "new" state of the art jumbotron, some more luxuray boxes and what would become the E and F balconies at the old Civic Arena! I have to dig it out but I have a quote from Lemieux himself (Pgh Press clipping) where he himself said he didn't like the "Pigeon" logo (he was still a player then). The team won Back to Back Championships and you go and change the logo....who does that?? Did the Canadiens change their logo after Championships? Did the Wings change their logo after their back to back Championships in the '90s? I hate to pick on the Canucks but how many times have they changed their uniform/logo over the years....what exactly is their true identity?? Montreal = C an H, Wings = Winged Wheel, Hawks = Indian head, Bruins = Spoked B, see where I am going with this?? Pgh's Savior was drafted with the team using the Skating Penguin in '84, sure they struggled but they eventually won 2 Cups with the Skating Penguin as the logo. Pgh's 2nd savior was drafted in '05 with the team using the Skating Penguin (Pigeon logo was relegated to shoulder logo) FUNNY how once the Pigeon logo disappeared from the uniform completely that they got back to the Finals
Well dang, I knew a lot of dedicated Pens fans hate it for certain reasons, but I wasn't expecting this.
Honestly, I love the logo because it has an emotional connection with me. I was born in '96, never lived in PA, but went up numerous times since then to Pittsburgh (we have relatives that live up there) to see Pens games in the old Civic Arena (bless that building). I even went to the 1997 entry draft and saw Mike Lange himself. Well, let's not get off topic.
The logo will always be my favorite Penguins logo as will all the logos all teams used in the 1999-2000 season. I had this game that came around that season, and I played the heck out of it. All of the logos and jerseys are embedded into my head I played it so much; and it's why my favorite logos and jerseys the Sabres used were the black and red ones, for the Caps it's the ol' blue and gold, etc. I'm all for tradition, and I'm glad a lot of teams nowadays have reverted back to their classic logos that the majority of people remember. But personally, my heart will always be with everything that the teams used that season, including that Pens logo. But for that specific logo, it's more than that for me.
Living with my guardian who's a Pens fan, I grew up seeing that logo everywhere on different kinds of merchandise, some of which I'm collecting more of nowadays. Same goes for growing up playing the old games that had it in there too, as well as watching Pens games on TV all the time. I've seen it so much, I've just come to the point that it gives me this mysterious good feeling whenever I look at it. Yeah, it's rather different than any other Pens logo, and that could be a negative factor, but I personally think if you look a deeper, you'll understand what I mean.
I personally think the logo is extremely iconic, and well designed. Vance Wright Adams incorporated an ingenious design, almost intimidating, more streamlined look than the traditional logo. (You can actually look at a behind the scenes video of the designing here) The story behind it is what I think makes it great, too. And I'm glad it was used even after it got replaced as a primary logo. Just, the pure futuristic essence it has is just astounding, and it's very epic-looking, IMO. I never watched a Pens game until October 2003, so unfortunately I never saw the logo in action (yeah it was on the shoulder then, but they're barely visible). Even so, I know me and a lot of people out there love this as much as I do; it's definitely one of my favorite sports logos of all time.
Now, granted, I do understand that it is associated with losing (I remember the first year they used it, they lost in the second round of the playoffs 3-4 against the Islanders, even after getting the best regular season record ever), and truly, that hurts me. I always wear that logo with pride, I see it every day. It's just, I have such a connection with that logo, it's ridiculous.
But, in the end, I will always be happy if the majority of fans are, and that's what the current logo is all about. I love teams and corporations that reflect on the past, it fills people with a sense of nostalgia, whilst symbolizing moving forward. As much as I would die for having them revive the 90's logo, I would be okay if the current logo stays forever (though hopefully they bring back the REAL shade of gold that represents Pittsburgh!), because it's what most people would be happy with. That said, I'd love it as well if that old logo could come back as an alternate...but, sadly, as you said, it seemed to bring the worse luck out of the team, and sadly, may not be remembered again.
Only time will tell...
I think the design of the jersey is ok (excluding the "RoboPigoen" logo) The execution is terrible!
The Chicago jersey is good. I would make the red a bit lighter though.
I'm no Pens fan by any means, so I guess the fans get final say. However, I find the "pigeon" as called is actually a very nice design. It incorporates the triangle from the previous logo with a sleeker, more sophisticated penguin. The wing blending to the side of the triangle is just good conceptually to me.
It sounds based on multiple comments over time that Pens fans prefer the cartoony look and the association with the Cup wins. It's not Whalers-level design, but considering some of the rebranding we've seen since, the Pens organization tried hard to make a nice product. I'd wager many Isles fans would have killed for a sleek rebrand rather than the fisherman.
@ Nascar, @ Casper
Hanging up the Skates
Gary Adams, an artist with Vance, Wright & Adams Design Group, came up with the "corporate-style" logo that was used on the shoulder patches until the start of the 2007-08 season.
Adam's said new Penguins' owner Howard Baldwin wanted something more "marketable" and even considered changing the name back to the Hornets."
"Baldwin said: 'They're gonna kill me for changing the logo, why not the name?' " recalled Adams. "We even looked at replacing gold with the Vegas Gold color scheme."
The design was met with skepticism and superstition. Loyal fans thought the logo change was a Baldwin gimimick simply to generate money in jersey sales. Others, including Gessner, thought the logo change would ruin the Pens' mojo. (THINKING GESSNER WAS ON TO SOMETHING EH??)
"They just won the Stanley Cup two years in a row and they wanted to change the logo?" recalled Gessner. "I was stunned and saddened. They were really on a roll and they decided to change horses."
This was taken from the website pittsburghhockey.net
It's a great logo. It's a much better design than the skating penguin, and despite the stupid "pigeon" crap, is actually much, much closer to what penguins actually look like than that moronic cartoon.
Seriously- it's a better logo in every conceivable way. At least be honest about that. You don't like the cartoon because it's a better logo. It is, by any measure, a dramatically worse one. You like the cartoon and dislike the professional logo because of your association with cups and with a hated owner. I don't really know if that's an appropriate reaction. All I can say is that as an independent fan without any of those associations, I'd really appreciate it if the Pens went back to using a logo that doesn't look like it was drawn by a 5 year old.
@ Zeus, dude its a sports logo, its not supposed to look like the real thing! Pens fan since the '79/'80 season. The Pens started out using a skating Penguin as the logo (was just never used on a uniform until the '11 WC). Notre Dame uses a leprechaun as its logo, DOES a real leprechaun look like that? So if the Leprechaun that ND uses is an accurate portrait then what about the Boston Celtics Leprechaun logo, I gues that logo isn't a real Leprechaun then! Pittsburgh Steelers...ever seen a real Steeler, what does a Steeler look like exactly?? Pittsburgh Pirates have used many different Pirate themed logos...which one depicts a real pirate and can you be 100% sure that YES real Pirates looked like that? Philadelphia Flyers...what is a Flyer and what exactly is an accurate portrait of one? Baltimore Ravens logo has a B in it, do real Ravens have a B on their head? See where I am going with this?
@91Pens92
Cool down, I don't think anyone is trying to start a fight. I think the difference has been stated by myself and others- the graphic design of the 90s logo is well conceived and found a way to add a more realistic penguin with the triangular motif of the previous logo. It's sharp- to a neutral.
The counter-argument does indeed appear to be that the tradition in both design history and association with winning has Pens fans in favor of the older logo. That's fine, like I said before, it's your team.
Being that this is more of design blog than a fan blog, I don't think the comments and opinions on the merits of design work are inflammatory.
I don't particularly like the ND or Celtics logos- but both come of an era where that was the norm. The Browns ditched a similar look and never truly replaced it. Being a Pittsburgh fan, you must know that the Steeler logo is derived from US Steel and only came about in the 60s. Prior to that, I imagine a Steeler was a more abstract concept- it still is. Finally, the Ravens had a more appropriate logo in my opinion, but the circumstances of its birth were regrettable and the logo was excised. I don't care for the bird and B from a design view.
Basically, I don't mind things like the Flyers logo, which take an otherwise boring P and gives a nod to a wing effect. You could also take your comments to more absurd levels, such as the NHL's odd depiction of whales, since they are generally not royal blue, or leap out of ice looking tribal. There is a place for abstraction in logo design; what the commenters you are angered by are implying is that they don't prefer cartoony mascot looks. Your opinion matters, don't theirs?