Google is an American corporation that has existed since 1998 and is part of Alphabet Inc. She focuses on the Internet search, advertising technology, and cloud computing. Its main product is a multilingual search engine that provides quick access to information of interest. Some several tools and services are not related to a search engine: Google Glass headset, Google Chrome OS and Android operating systems, Hangouts messenger, Picasa graphics editor, Google Chrome browser, Google+ social network Gmail webmail.
Meaning and History
Ruth Kedar made a great contribution to developing the logo, an artist, and a part-time professor at Leland Stanford Junior University, where the creators of Google – Sergey Brin and Larry Page studied. However, it relied on an already existing concept of color design. It simply gave the colorful lettering a new form, so that its merit lies only in the successful interpretation of the emblem.
1995 – 1997
The first logo reflects Google’s old name – BackRub. It is dedicated to the popular practice of obtaining backlinks at that time to increase website traffic. The word is written in bold red sans serif letters. The font vaguely resembles Impart Family and PF Fusion Sans Pro Black. There is a photographed hand in the background touching a flat surface that looks like a naked back in the full version.
1997 – 1998
Two years later, BackRub was renamed Google, which was reflected in its logo. The new name is derived from the mathematical term googol, meaning the number ten followed by one hundred zeros. As a result of the rebranding, a logo with multicolored bouncing letters appeared. The lettering was flattened and looked funny, but it could become iconic. It was used in beta when Google only existed as a pilot project for Leland Stanford Junior University students.
1998
Google was incorporated in 1998. The same year, a new logo was created using the Baskerville Bold font. The designers revisited the color scheme by coloring the letters green (uppercase “G” and “l”), red (first “o” and “e”), yellow (second “o”), and blue (lowercase “g”). It is rumored that this logo was modeled in the GIMP program. The question of who is its creator remains open: some sources claim that it is Sergey Brin, others attribute the authorship to Larry Page.
1998 – 1999
The first emblem, adopted in September 1998, did not last long. Already in October, it was replaced by a modernized version with a blue capital “G” and an exclamation mark at the end of the word. Gradient transitions and shadows are more pronounced, making the letters appear three-dimensional. The exclamation mark was probably meant to make the Google logo look like the Yahoo! symbol because they competed on everything, including corporate identity.
1999 – 2013
From May 1999 to September 2013, a simplified emblem with two-dimensional lettering without the punctuation mark “!” Was used. The designers opted for a new typeface Catull BQ, created in 1982 by artist Gustav Jager for the Berthold Type Foundry. The typeface was distinguished by oblique elements of letters and curly serifs, stylized in antique style.
1999 – 2010
In May 1999, another logo appeared – this time with a 3D design. It was used as the official Google symbol until May 2010. It was developed by Ruth Kedar, whom Sergey Brin and Larry Page met through a mutual friend. She offered several versions with Adobe Garamond and Catull typefaces, magnifying glass, intertwined o’s an intricate multicomponent shape. But the owners of the company have chosen a minimalistic version, closer to the original.
2010 – 2013
In 2010, the design proposed by Ruth Kedar was redesigned. The font remained the same – only the details were changed. The pronounced shadows disappeared, the intensity of the gradient decreased, the yellow “o” acquired an orange tint.
2013 – 2015
The next logo update took place in October 2013. The developers made the inscription two-dimensional and adjusted the serifs’ shape so that they were not as sharp as before. It was assumed that such a brand name should look harmoniously with the recently appeared Google services, and at the same time, be combined with the Material Design style.
2015 – present
In 2015, the company introduced a simplified logo. The serifs have disappeared, the shades have become more saturated. This version was developed by a whole team of graphic artists who collaborated on a weeklong sprint.
Font and Color of the Emblem
Google has a mini-emblem in the form of a capital “G.” It consists of several color segments: blue, green, yellow, and red. The rainbow letter is used as an icon for a voice search service, a favicon for web resources, and an icon for a mobile application.
Until 2015, the logo contained various modifications of the Catull font. After the final redesign, a new font, Product Sans, was introduced. The “e” has a beveled line as a symbol of the company’s non-standard character. The inscription color is not uniform, catchy: the letters are painted in bright shades of red, green, blue, and yellow, which contrast with each other and are strongly associated with Google products.