The Story Behind the Google Logo

Ever wondered why they made Google's logo like that? Who made that simple but catchy face logo that has represented the most popular search engine on the internet? And do you have any idea what Google's first logo look like when it was still a Stanford project?

Well some of us probably don't really notice Big G's logo that much unless it was doodled by the creative Dennis Hwang for some special events or holidays. But who really is the brain behind Google's primary logo? It is Ruth Kedar, who was teaching design at Stanford when she was introduced by a friend to Google founders Sergei Brin and Larry Page.

Google at that time wanted a unique logo that would clearly differentiate them from the other existing search players (Yahoo, Excite, HotBot, etc.), as well as embody their unique vision. But these other websites mentioned were commercial portals first, and search engines second. Google on the other hand wanted to convey that it was as a search provider first and foremost.

On an interview at WebProNews, Kedar explained on how they ended with the now popular Google logo:

* It was playful and deceptively simple. The design subtle as to look almost non-designed, the reading effortless. The colors evoke memories of child play, but deftly stray from the color wheel strictures so as to hint to the inherent element of serendipity creeping into any search results page and the irreverance and boldness of the “I am feeling lucky” link. The texture and shading of each letter is done in an unobtrusive way resulting in lifting it from the page while giving it both weight and lightness. It is solid but there is also an ethereal quality to it.

* Times-Roman was the font of choice for the web at that time, while sans-serif fonts were the darling of the printed world. I wanted the readability of a serifed font, but looked for a typeface that had the same qualities we were looking for – subtly sophisticated, but with some humor and irreverence . The chosen typeface is a based on Catull, an old style serif typeface. Catull borrows elements from traditional writing instruments such as the quill and the chisel with a modern twist. Search, by nature, is an activity that requires we look into the past. Therefore Catull’s historical ties seemed appropriate, as did the bridging between the old analog world and the new emerging digital era.

* Visually, there were two main schools of thought at the time: those wanting to emulate the conventional non-web giants such as Sun and SGI (bold all-caps sans-serifed fonts), and those who viewed the irreverence of Yahoo’s non-designed approach as “the look" for the new medium. This design managed to break with the existing conventions landing Google with the unique visual expression it was looking for.

BackRub:



Does the name scare you? Or is it the hands? Well, that hand right there is of Larry Page. When Google was a Stanford research project, it was nicknamed "BackRub" because the technology checks backlinks to determine a site's importance. For more info regarding this, read the BackRub FAQs page. The logo evolved to other designs when they used "Google," here's a demo page of their early Google search engine.

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technorati tags: google logo, ruth kedar, backrub, search engine