Los Angeles is charging forward with the American bid to host the Summer Olympic Games in 2024, and while that may seem like a long way off, the city has been busy prepping since September 2015.听

The LA24 committee, a public and private partnership among, primarily, the City of Los Angeles, the Wasserman Media Group, and the U.S. Olympic Committee, is spearheading L.A.鈥檚 bid for the games. On February 16, the organization released its official branding materials听that will represent the city's bid effort. Along with an official slogan, 鈥淔ollow the Sun,鈥� there鈥檚 the all-important emblem. It portrays a flying angel, colored with a radial gradient of yellows, oranges, and purples鈥攕imilar to those that fill L.A.鈥檚 skies during sunrise or sunset. Should the International Olympic Committee听choose L.A. to host the 2024 games when it makes the final decision in 2017, a new emblem and slogan would be chosen.

The angel represents the only U.S. city that wants to take听on the increasingly controversial听role听of hosting the games.听Boston was the first U.S. nominee, but Bostonians 听Olympic games are known to drop on host cities. Following Boston鈥檚 withdrawal, L.A. mayor Eric Garcetti argued that the city could, as it did in 1984, host the Olympics without significant financial burden. In fact, L.A. is , and it did so twice鈥攊n 1932 and 1984.听Public support seems to be strong, too.听A poll conducted by Loyola Marymount University this week found that out of 2,425听Angelenos, 88 percent supported the Olympic bid. “I鈥檝e never seen that in any survey I鈥檝e done,” one of the poll鈥檚 organizers, Brianne Gilbert,听.

Los听Angeles听is competing with听Rome, Budapest, and Paris for the final Olympic bid.听The emblem could be the face of America's first successful bid for the summer hosting gig听since 1996鈥攕o we听asked Robert听Nakata, the design director for听, an L.A.-based advertising firm in charge of bid branding materials,听about every choice the designers made to create the most meaningful emblem.

The Angel

The emblem can be interpreted as a melding of the 鈥淐ity of Angels鈥� moniker and the official 鈥淔ollow the Sun鈥� slogan.听City officials听wanted to underscore L.A.鈥檚 ability to host people from all over the world鈥攊t already hosts significant听diaspora听and immigrant communities from Mexico, China, Russia, and Iran, among many others.听鈥淯ltimately, one of the five values of L.A.鈥檚 Olympic Games bid鈥攗nity鈥攄etermined the final selection”听of the angel as key element,听says Nakata. He points to the city鈥檚 founders, who were of Native American, Mexican, African, and European descent, and who nicknamed it the 鈥淐ity of Angels.鈥� The series of white lines radiating from the angel鈥檚 chest are intended to invoke the rays of sunlight that grace L.A. 284 days of the year.

The angel herself听is shown with arms reaching overhead and face turned upward, like a gymnast performing an uneven bar routine, about to stick a perfect landing. 鈥淭here was intention to design the figure to be athletic and dynamic, youthful and female,鈥� he says. 鈥淲e felt this was more in keeping with the progressive vision Los Angeles was forming for their Olympic bid.鈥�

One of the key differences between Los Angeles鈥� emblem design and those of other bid cities is its literal approach. Paris and Rome have submitted highly abstract听representations of their city鈥檚 most notable landmarks鈥攖he Paris logo consists of the number 24 in a shape resembling the Eiffel Tower, and Rome鈥檚 features the Colosseum.听

Not only is Los Angeles鈥� emblem a proportionally accurate depiction of a human figure, it鈥檚 clearly female. This is unusual because figurative emblems are often deliberately designed without a clear sex.

鈥淐hoosing female over male was a decision from the perception, and reality, that sports communication is already dominated by male athletic imagery,鈥� Nakata says. 鈥淭he Olympics are an event that celebrates male and female athletic achievement in equal measure. Why not represent athletic achievement through female form?”

The Secret Construction

The emblem鈥檚 curvatures are also a deliberate nod to L.A.鈥檚 aesthetics. A closer look at the design鈥檚 construction shows that it harkens back to design styles popular throughout L.A. during the earlier parts of the 20th century. The outline is composed entirely of pure circles arranged over square proportions, as seen in this graphic from 72andSunny:

The strict use of circles as a guide for the silhouette is a throwback to Art Deco or early Modernist design, two styles that characterize many of L.A.鈥檚 famous buildings from the听city鈥檚 period of unprecedented growth during the 1920s and 1930s. Buildings like the 听and听L.A.鈥檚 听are all covered with fabulously ornate designs composed of relatively simple geometric patterns. 鈥淢ost logos today tend to be more abstract,鈥� Nakata says.听

The Typeface

The emblem鈥檚 typeface听which 72andSunny designed in-house, also reflects Art Deco and Modernist influences. 鈥淐reating a custom font based on circles and squares seemed like a logical extension of the design to create overall harmony,鈥� Nakata says. Each letter is simple and geometric, which Nakata says 鈥渇eels like older Los Angeles, because 3D type on buildings tended to be constructed this way [in the mid-20th century].鈥� Take, for example, the uniform block text on the , which was built in the early 1930s in the Art Deco style.听

The Big Reveal

The bid emblem has received a widely warm reception among Angelenos. Mayor Eric Garcetti 听it as a rightful representation of the 鈥渉ard work, creativity, and ingenuity鈥� reflected in the Angeleno spirit. 鈥淚鈥檓 a fan,鈥� says Ruth Wallach, the director of the Arts and Humanities Libraries at the University of Southern California. 鈥淚t reminds me of those smoggy sunsets L.A. does so well. Other places have good sunsets, but the smog in L.A. gives our own such magnificent color.鈥濃��

The post How L.A. Designed a Symbol for the City’s Olympic Dreams appeared first on 国产吃瓜黑料 Online.