Annual report cover, Cummins Engine Company

A logo, meant for print or television, is designed primarily as a means of identification. Some logos can do more; they can help sell a product, an idea, or an ideal; the Cummins logo does both. But this function must be designed for print or television and must be built into the basic design at a critical stage of the design process. There are few logos that provide such opportunities. Simplicity is the key to these problems. Illustrative material that is too complex is self-defeating. …

“It reminds me of the Georgia chain gang,” quipped an IBM executive when he first eyed the striped logo. The Westinghouse insignia was greeted similarly when it was first shown in 1960: “This looks like a pawnbroker’s sign.” How many exemplary works have gone down the drain because of such pedestrian fault-finding? And how many good designs became bad designs as a consequence of mindless dabbling on the part of clients with little or no understanding of visual logic? …