2008 Olympic Games Graphic Identity

Graphic Designer Richard Doubleday - and our former professor - recently wrote an article for Baseline Magazine on the Beijing Olympic Games graphic identity. The task of creating an identity for the 2008 Olympic Games was given to designer Min Wang. Wang is also the Dean of the School of Design, at China Central Academy of Fine Arts (CAFA) in Beijing. Click here for more on Wang and the 2008 Olympic Games identity system.
This article got me thinking about what an enormous task designing a graphic identity for the Olympic Games would be. For every Olympic year the identity system must be unique, individual, representative of the host city, and able to communicate to the single most diverse audience. That being said, I think that the design group led by Min Wang was highly successful in creating a dynamic graphic identity. The simple logo is elegant, expressive and representative of the Chinese culture. The painterly brush strokes of the symbol and the "Beijing 2008" logo are reminiscent of Chinese calligraphy and ink painting.

Personally, I think that London's 2012 Olympic Games identity could take a lesson from Beijing...