A riot of cute
This week, work by Stockholm Design Lab, plus the best historical logos added to LogoArchive.
A riot of cute
Opinion by Emily Gosling
You could argue that there’s a fair few similarities in terms of Japan and Sweden’s approach to design, and the aesthetics of life more generally. Both are known often for a specific kind of minimalism – a tastefulness that eschews fluff, luxuriates in crisp whites and keeps its edges, everything in its right place, rules and order and form following function.
But while Sweden fits snugly into the cold bosom of Scandinavia and as such, Scandi Design, Japan’s minimalist aspects are countered by its concurrent predilection for the exact opposite – a style that’s all the colours, all the time – a riot of cute characters, neons, and excitable noise (both aural and visual).
Sweden, Japan, and this dichotomy of simplicity and mascots has now come together beautifully in this new identity for Sigma, a Japanese manufacturer of photographic equipment including lenses, cameras, and accessories. Founded in 1961 by Michihiro Yamaki, Sigma remains a family-run operation, now under the leadership of his son, Kazuto Yamaki.
Since 1973 Sigma has designed and produced absolutely everything from its factory in Aizu in Japan’s Fukushima Prefecture, which oversees everything from lens polishing and injection moulding to assembly and quality control. It’s this intense level of craftsmanship and rigour that’s earned the company a reputation for both high quality and state of the art innovation.
And it’s this deep-rooted culture of precision and control – as well as a good smattering of creativity – which Stockholm Design Lab subtly brings to the fore. The new identity manages to succinctly reflect all of this, and ultimately its focus on quality, across every touchpoint without ever being overtly technical or dry, nor having to drive the point home through complex copy or reams of text…
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Discover over 4700 of the world’s best historical logos with LogoArchive.
LogoArchive is the world’s largest online historical logo book with 4600+ examples, with more added every day for endless inspiration. Above, some of the recent logos added to the archive.
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Brand Archive: Tripadvisor, 2025
Be inspired by the industry’s latest and best. Brand Archive has the logos, colours, typefaces and applications from some of the world’s best brands. It’s a resource like no other. New additions this week include Tripadvisor, Flaum, Gemini, Big Cartel and Ito Gin.
→ Visit Brand Archive
Logo Histories: Surbank
Discover the story of the story of Yusaku Kamekura and PAOS’ 1985 logo and corporate identity for Surbank Setagaya. Find this and over 150 other stories of logos from the past on Logo Histories.
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