{"id":6787,"date":"2020-01-09T18:49:48","date_gmt":"2020-01-09T23:49:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ceros.com\/inspire\/?p=6787"},"modified":"2021-03-10T11:47:01","modified_gmt":"2021-03-10T16:47:01","slug":"2020-summer-olympics-logo-tokyo-asao-tokolo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ceros.com\/inspire\/originals\/2020-summer-olympics-logo-tokyo-asao-tokolo\/","title":{"rendered":"2020 Summer Olympics Logo: Designer Asao Tokolo Sticks to the Basics"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading Time: <\/span> 4<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>\n

It was quite a feat to find the Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics logo, especially after the original choice was tossed out due to allegations of plagiarism<\/a> in 2015. The Emblems Selection Committee eventually picked this winning design by Asao Tokolo<\/a>, a Japanese artist with a background in architecture and sculpture, known for his mathematically precise and intricate designs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Picked from a shortlist of four (but out of a pool of almost 15,000 submissions) these \u201charmonized checkered emblems\u201d consist of 45 indigo rectangles of three distinct dimensions, which create a checkered pattern using the white negative spaces between them. The design is meant to symbolize the variety and diversity of the games<\/a>, as well as the athletes who participate in them. The Olympic ring and corresponding Paralympic crescent are both paired with a typeface that\u2019s a version of a version of DIN 1451<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The checkered pattern Tokolo uses in these emblems is a reference to ichimatsu moyou<\/em>, a traditional Japanese checkerboard pattern popularized during the Edo period (1603 and 1868). It supposedly got its name<\/a> from the famous Kabuki actor Sanogawa Ichimatsu I, who was often portrayed in black-and-white checkered kimonos.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Actor Sanogawa Ichimatsu I, 1759<\/em>
Source: <\/em>The Art Institute of Chicago<\/em><\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The choice of indigo, or ai<\/em>, a color used in many Japanese arts, was similarly meant to evoke a traditional era of Japanese culture and, as the Tokyo 2020 website says<\/a>, express \u201ca refined elegance and sophistication that exemplifies Japan.\u201d Tokolo was also drawn to the simple indigo-and-white color palette because of its flexibility, as he explained to the Japan Times<\/em><\/a>. \u201cI was thinking of something like a coloring picture that everyone can add their own color to,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The significance of this checkered design extends beyond Japanese traditions\u2014it\u2019s also representative of Tokolo\u2019s artistic concerns and ethos. For Tokolo, these emblems are a continuation of his pattern work. These pieces were partly made in response to the attack on September 11, 2001, an event that has deeply influenced his art. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere was a big disconnect in the world because of terrorism,\u201d Tokolo said<\/a>. \u201cso I wanted to connect things. This design is based on a similar philosophy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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A Tokolo-designed building fa\u00e7ade in Miyagi Prefecture, Japan, for Atelier Hitoshi Abe.<\/em>
Source: https:\/\/aha.design\/#\/pachinko-tiger-kagitori\/<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Tokolo is also behind two of the art posters chosen by the Organizing Committee. Much like the official checkered logos, Tokolo\u2019s spherically-patterned posters are comprised of a cross-hatching network of rhombuses and rectangles in indigo and white.<\/p>\n\n\n\n