The Georgia Aquarium’s fish logo reflects the essence of the brand. After all, it belongs to one of the world’s largest aquatic zoos. It is a collective image that embodies all its inhabitants, including those without tails or fins.
The Georgia Aquarium was built around Bernie Marcus, co-founder of Home Depot. Born in Newark to Jewish immigrants from Russia, Marcus made his fortune after Home Depot opened its first two Atlanta stores on June 22, 1979. He got the idea for an aquarium in 1990, during his 60th birthday dinner at Monterey Bay Aquarium, where he saw how strongly marine life affected visitors of all ages.
In November 2001, Marcus announced plans for a major aquarium in downtown Atlanta. Before construction, he and his wife, Billi, visited 56 aquariums across 13 countries and consulted biologists, veterinarians, architects, and animal care experts. Building began in 2003 on a 20-acre site north of Centennial Olympic Park. Marcus donated $255 million through the Marcus Foundation, with no public funding used.
The Georgia Aquarium opened on November 23, 2005. At the time, it was the world’s largest aquarium by water volume, holding more than 8 million gallons. Its main attraction was Ocean Voyager, a 6.3-million-gallon tank sponsored by Home Depot and designed for whale sharks. Ralph, Norton, Alice, and Trixie became the first whale sharks kept outside Asia. More than 2.3 million people visited in the first year.
In 2007, Ralph and Norton died after serious health problems, leading the aquarium to review treatment procedures and add two new males from Taiwan, Taroko and Yushan. In 2011, the aquarium opened the $100 million AT&T Dolphin Tales exhibit. In 2012, the aquarium asked NOAA to import 18 belugas from Russia, but the request was denied in 2013. During its first decade, Georgia Aquarium welcomed more than 43 million visitors and supported about $6.9 billion in investment in nearby Atlanta.
Meaning and History
The Georgia Aquarium was financed by the American billionaire Bernard “Bernie” Marcus. He envisioned an aquarium in Atlanta to support the city’s economy and serve as an educational resource. The Coca-Cola Company donated the land. It was located near another local attraction, the Centennial Olympic Park.
The Georgia Aquarium opened in 2005, four years after Bernard Marcus proposed building it. Businessman Jeffery Scott Swanagan became the water zoo’s first director and co-founder. He led most of the processes, including the building’s design and the purchase of animals.
What is Georgia Aquarium?
The Georgia Aquarium is the largest aquarium in the United States and throughout the Western Hemisphere. As its name suggests, it is located in Atlanta, Georgia. Visitors can see giant sea devils, bottlenose dolphins, black sea lions, beluga whales, whale sharks, and other exotic ocean inhabitants.
When the Georgia Aquarium opened, it was recognized as the world’s largest aquarium. Although it recently lost this honorary title, it remains massive. The large indoor space, which holds tens of millions of liters of water, contains seven exhibits and galleries. Animals from different regions of the world are kept in specialized living conditions that closely resemble their natural environments.
Despite the high ticket prices at the Georgia Aquarium, attendance there breaks all records. After all, you can not only see African penguins and Steller sea lions but also dive into a shark tank, go to a 4D cinema, or catch garbage in augmented reality.
Since 2005, the Georgia Aquarium has used a logo featuring its name and a large blue “G” with a fishtail. Perhaps the artists depicted the tail fin not of a simple fish but of a marine mammal, such as a whale or a dolphin. The “G” is above the gray lettering and is center-aligned.
The hint of a fish theme in Georgia Aquarium’s emblem is especially relevant, as the oceanarium houses thousands of marine species. By the way, “G” has not only an obvious fishtail but also a hidden fin – it is formed by negative space inside the letter. This fragment is rounded and looks more elegant than the tail sticking out from behind. From another angle, the inside of the “G” resembles a marine predator’s open mouth.
Font and Colors
Two fonts resemble those used in the Georgia Aquarium wordmark. One is Bank Gothic Medium. Morris F. Benton developed it in the early 1930s for promotional materials. Its closest analog is Banker Square Bold. This is a geometric grotesque with square letters whose corners are rounded.
The brand’s signature colors are Aquarium Blue (#1E4287) and Aquarium Gray (#8A8A8D). They are represented in the logo. Blue is associated with water, so the palette choice is symbolic.



