Say hello to Instagram’s new logo designer…
How the new Instagram icon was made. pic.twitter.com/GnivZv81pW
— Oliur (@UltraLinx) May 11, 2016
Ok, so maybe that isn’t necessarily how it happened… but maybe. For years now we’ve lived with Instagram sticking out like a sore thumb on our phone next to all the green and blue icons with its semi-realistic camera icon so maybe it’s true that it was time for a change. The video below shows how Instagram got from point A to point B in their logo design.
Brands creating videos or posts about new logos is a relatively new idea but one that is well received by onlookers because it gives a glimpse into what the designers were thinking, like that time Medium changed their logo. This “introduction” of a brand’s new direction is both creative and assuring. It assures the audience that all (terrible) logos have great thought put into their creation. But back to Instagram’s faux-pas.
Understandably, Instagram wanted to hop on the flat, minimalistic/simplistic design wagon and this was their attempt. While the actual logo makes sense with having the camera lens and flash still there and recognizable, the colors of the logo are where it just goes way downhill. Their wagon just jumped off a cliff. A simple Google Search will help explain why Instagram’s new colors are “wrong.” Colors evoke emotion, and brands that try to be more “human” want to show emotion through their designs. Well let’s see what Instagram use to tell us they are, and who they feel like they are now.
Instagram use to give us the real feels of drama, sophistication, rejuvenation and timelessness, but apparently now they tell us they are enchanting, festive, vibrant and bold. None of these feels are bad/wrong, and many people like my wife may enjoy the new look, but the fact remains that Instagram’s emotional message has changed, visually. The awkward melding of purple, pink, yellow, red and orange makes for an aesthetically uncomfortable glance when opening the app. Next to smooth, flat design icons like Facebook and Twitter and YouTube, this one looks like it’s trying to stand out, and not in a good way. This icon is trying to stand out the same way a kid in school knows the answer to a question but won’t be called on so he waves his hands around saying “I know the answer! Pick me, pick me! Right here!” I already know Instagram is my go-to app for beautiful images so a simple one color design would have worked perfectly.
So if Instagram is going to strip away any and all in-app design as well, they should have at least made a logo with some of their original colors, the brown and blue. So I’ll leave you with this, Instagram… Alternative versions of what a new logo SHOULD have looked like. Although, we’ve gotten use to Instagram’s bold, realistic camera logo before that was unlike any other designs, so maybe this new one will grow on us, too. I hope not, though.
