Steven Universe Logo PNG
The logo of Steven Universe, the popular animated series, features a star symbol, just like the one on Steven’s T-shirt. This graphic element was introduced into the story as part of the visual design. Rebecca Sugar deliberately added repetitive characters to the show to create a sense of the importance of small details and fill them with power.
Steven Universe: Brand overview
| Founded: | November 4, 2013 – January 21, 2019 |
| Founder: | Rebecca Sugar |
| Headquarters: | Beach City, Delmarva |
| Website: | cartoonnetwork.co.uk |
Meaning and History
What is Steven Universe?
Steven Universe is an animated film created by American screenwriter and storyboard artist Rebecca Rea Sugar. Children’s animated series focusing on topics such as the importance of family, love, and mutual assistance. The main acting character is the little boy Steven, who got his name in honor of Rebecca’s younger brother.
Rebecca Rea Sugar inspired the animated show. She also came up with the original design, developed the characters’ personalities, and named the series after her younger brother, partially writing off the image of the main character from him. Sugar also greatly contributed to creating the Steven Universe logo, which contains a five-pointed star and an inscription. The same star is featured on the T-shirt of the fictional boy Steven.
In an interview, Rebecca said that she was inspired by the visual symbol system by Mike Mignola, author of the Hellboy comic series. She turned to a talented artist for help when planning the concept for her new animation project. The creator of the animated series wanted advice on visual design because she admired Mike’s ability to fill the space of comics with small but very important details. It turned out that the repetition of the same symbol at different points in the story makes it possible to associate it with a certain character.
As a result, Sugar decided to add a yellow five-pointed star to Steven’s pink T-shirt. Why this particular sign? The author of the animated series wanted to build a mythological basis for the story based on ancient goddesses. Mignola advised her to pay attention to Ishtar, the goddess of war, love, and fertility. Her symbol is an eight-pointed star, and her animal is a lion. That is why Steven has a pet lion in the animated show, who is the main character’s guardian.
2012
This logo was used during the pre-development phase of the animated series when only its initial concept existed. He was featured in the introductory video, where a yellow-brown inscription “STEVEN UNIVERSE” appeared on a light background. The show title spanned two lines and was in bubble type. All glyphs were capitalized but varied in size, as one of the characters relied on a “flattened” top word. The light edges and dark center made the letters appear three-dimensional.
2013 (pre-pilot)
In the pre-pilot version of the emblem, the two-level inscription became multi-colored. Red “S” and “I,” orange “T” and “V,” green “V” and “R,” two purple “N,” and yellow and blue “E” made the name of the series childishly colorful, which paired especially well with bubble type. At the same time, the upper line had the shape of an arch, and the lower part was curved in the opposite direction. Between them was a scarlet medallion depicting an eight-pointed star – the main symbol of the goddess Ishtar.
2013 (pilot)
The lettering changed to yellow and gold in the show’s pilot episode. At the same time, it was slightly tilted back, which was achieved by changing the shape and size of the glyphs. The designers made both words shiny using a gradient and highlights. The black contours that outlined each letter made the silhouettes clear and voluminous.
2013 – 2019
The wordmarks designed for the series’ promo poster and pilot inspired the final Steven Universe logo. Art director Kevin Dart retained the yellow color and bubble font of the lettering but slightly changed the overall design concept. His sketches were the basis for a version created in collaboration with other creative team members. Ian Jones-Quartey and Rebecca Sugar provided helpful tips, Angie Wang and Danny Hynes shaped the letters, and Tiffany Ford finished off the logo.
In this version, the series title is written in bold italics, with the initial letters of both words merging. Inside the “U” is a small five-pointed star painted red and blue. The same colors have wide contours of the inscription. The first line is slightly shifted to the left because another star—a large yellow-gold one — is depicted on the right.
Rebecca Sugar used the star as a universal graphic symbol unrelated to the character’s age and gender. The series creator considered this a positive symbol associated with space and good elementary school grades. The star is also related to the goddess Ishtar, which emphasizes the animated show’s mythological basis.
Font and Colors
The name Steven Universe consists of a set of individual cartoon-style glyphs. However, fan-made fonts based on the logo exist: Crystal Universe or the Steven Universe Font family. These fonts contain bubble glyphs with very wide elements and tiny letter gaps.
The palette consists of red, blue, and several shades of yellow. All colors are warm and bright. They are randomly scattered around the emblem and have clear boundaries without a gradient.