I like it. It fits your audience. What style(s) are you thinking about for the site?

Dan,

I’m going for a combination of

a) a graffitied, dirty look (for which a logo treatment giving it a stencil/spray paint look will be appropriate)

b) a bubbly, dreamy look with rainbows, clouds (just stylised shapes, not photographic)

which adds up to street art hard core rapper meets absent minded bird loving my little pony collector. Something like that ;)

And thanks!

*s

I like it!

The only problem I see is that it will read as ‘ARIO’ because the ‘R’ is UC and it creates the expectation that the ‘TIO’ is UC as well. The crossbar on the ‘t’ doesn’t read immediately as a crossbar. The idea is strong and the execution is good but needs further refinement to work.

Thanks Chris,

Yep, making the t readable is not so easy, while maintaining the look. I have tried to emphasise the crossbar a bit here below. Also added a small swash to the t.

Søren Meisner

I read it as ARTO in the first post, but for some reason I saw 4RTO in the second.

What if, to emphasize the talk-bubble idea, you had the letters in black and then that which is currently black outlined in white? And perhaps make the exit part of the bubble a little larger?

Miss Tiffany,

Funny you should mention that, an earlier version of the logo had the outlines you talked about (if I understand you correctly)

I just think it overcomplicates the logo. I might be mistaken, though…

As for the 4RTO, that was on purpose: I tried to make an A that looked almost like 4, emphasising the 1337 aspect of the chat culture and so on… The exit might need some enlargement, though. Maybe like this:

Søren Meisner

I thinkt he latest version definately reads better. Just one little thing bugs me — where the ‘R’ meets the thickened crossbar for the ‘t’. Smooth out that transition more like it was in the original, and I love it. (Just my opinion, though).

What I’ve pictured in my head doesn’t match your earlier suggestion. But I do see what you mean.

I think the quasi-traps to add air do not help readability though. I’d say go back to the first and rotate the A a little bit more — counter-clockwise — and go. The modulation you’ve added in the strokes doesn’t feel as real or quickly written as the first.

Miss Tiffany & Engelhardt,

Thanks! I have made a smoother transition, mostly by going back to the original and narrowing the line through A and R, but still with a fairly thick crossline in t. The small swash at the buttom of the t is still there — it might help readability, but it also subtracts from the vertical feel of the A, R and t lines being parallel. A bit unsure about that.

I’m not too keen on rotating the A though. As I see it, it doesn’t matter if the A is read as 4, just as long as you read the t as a t at most times. As the logo does owe a thing or two to tags, grafitti etc, ultimate readability is not the real goal.

Søren Meisner

This new one is definitely better. The crossbar has a more natural thick-to-thin-to-thick now, too. Now that Tiffany mentioned it, I can’t stop seeing a 4 as well. But if it’s not a problem for you, then stick with it.

EDIT: Though now that I’m looking at it more, i’m not so sure about the A’s crossbar. It feels too narrow before leaving the arch of the legs. I’m staring at it too much.

It looks good but as Chris said I think the crossbar in the A needs a little bit of refinement. It’s a nice mark, just make sure that if you’re going to be using it at all sizes that it still reads at smaller sizes (that you don’t loose those thinner strokes in the logo type).

Remember this logo isn’t going to be used as a stand alone and will have supporting text to make it clear to that community its Arto and not 4rto.

Soren, if you can get a copy, look up: Fresh Styles for web designers (eye candy for the underground) by curt cloninger from New Riders. ISBN: 0-7357-1074-0

It could help give you ideas with the cloudy grafitti style. Especially look at the paper bag style.

I thinkened the A crossbar a bit. I think it helped. Included is also a small icon-sized-esque version of the logo.

Dan, I will have a look at that book. Thanks for the tip!

That looks nice! I look forward to seeing further developments!

Hi, I like the way the logo is progressing, however, it would be nice to test it without the crossing line and maybe, so that they don’t get too apart, getting the letters closer.

I think the “communication between young people” could is well expressed just by using the “comic bubble” and the form of the letters is young enough for me.

Just an idea :)

Regards!

Alexis Bellido

alexis,

Yeah, I could do that. However, having stared extensively at the logo I’m beginning to feel that it has a bit more of a Comic Sans feel in it than I like. Not quite sure about that, but it’s supposed to be — well — cool looking as well as saying communication between young people. I’m afraid it is getting too childish.

Any suggestions/comments?

Hi, maybe you are right, how young are the users in your audience?

Also I’ve remembered something like this in www.skype.com , not the same of course but a similar idea with the comic bubbles.

Just for playing, why don’t you come up with a totally different concept? I know you’ve invested lots of time in this one but sometimes when I feel I’m getting a little stuck I just drop the idea and start all over again, sometimes doing that allows me to come with new ideas for the original idea, isn’t it strange the way our brain work?! :)

Just my 0.02 :)

Regards!

Alexis Bellido

In this case don’t make the logo carry the website. It isn’t about the logo its about the content of the site. You are over thinking something the average reader will spend about a micro second looking at.

Dan, you’re probably completely right. I will develop the site further & stop worrying about the logo (for now). Thank you all!