Start your quest here,

http://www.olymperial.com/indexb_v4e5.htm?mode_exec=norm

Mexico 68, just amazing.

Matt

This is long out of print in English and in German... But you might be able to buy a used copy, or maybe even find it at your local library. Gustavo Gili, a Barcelona publisher, has a Spanish edition.

absolutely!

The new Bejing pictograms are just amzing at demonstrating my point...they have such personality and national pride...but communicate beautifully.

Cuando vi hace un par de meses por primera vez esta serie de pictogramas, me tomé la cabeza y dije: “¡oh, no puede ser!”.
Sinceramente creo que es un gran retroceso a los pictogramas olímpicos que veníamos conociendo. En particular los de Athenas me gustaban mucho y solían ser objeto de análisis en mis clases.

Los de Beijin, son terribles. Creo que están hechos sin ninguna delicadeza y más aún, sin amor. Está bien, creo que es un buen concepto y me gusta siempre alabar una gran idea, pero si no está bien resuelta de poco sirve tenerla.
Es una buena idea, a mi modo de ver, perdida.

La cantidad de errores técnicos, la falta de fluidez, las erróneas proporciones humanas, la nula sensibilidad en el trabajo de la línea, las terminaciones tristemente logradas, la ambigüedad de los trazos, la falta de continuidad, y la ausente corrección óptica de trazos (Gestalt) hacen que no estén a la altura olímpica.

Pensemos en el trabajo de Michael Phelps, de Félix Sánchez, de Paolo Bettini, de Ginobili, de Massu y González, de Mikael Ignatiev, etc.... Grandes deportistas que han logrado el ORO, gracias a la fineza y estrategia de su trabajo.

Los pictogramas no están a la altura olímpica.

___________________________________________

When I saw this pictograms series a couple of months ago for the first time, I took my head and I said: ” oh, it can´t be”!.
Sincerely I believe that it is a great setback to the olympic pictograms that we came knowing. In particular I liked those of Athenas a lot and they used to be analysis object in my classes.

Those of Beijin, are terrible. I think that they´re made of without any fineness and without love. It´s fine, I believe that it is a good concept and I usually like to praise a great idea, but if is not resolved, it´s unuseful.
It is a good idea, to my way of seeing, it´s lost.

The quantity of technical errors, the lack of fluency, the erroneous human proportions, the null sensibility of the work in the line, the sadly achieved terminations, the ambiguity of the lines, the lack of continuity, and the absentee optic correction of lines (Gestalt) they make them not to be to the olympic height.

Let´s think about Michael Phelp´s work, Félix Sánchez, Paolo Bettini, Ginobili, Massu and González, of kikael Ignatiev, etc.... Big sportsmen that won the GOLD, thanks to the fineness and strategy of their work.

The pictograms are not to the olympic height.

Juan Pablo De Gregorio
http://www.typies.blogspot.com

I kind took them for face value, but on closer inspection I guess you are right.

Do you think pictograms work best on an international level when they are standardised or can they have a national identity and still work just as well?