Following the trend of open contests for national logos, the United Arab Emirates are holding their own campaign to choose their new identity. There are 5 proposals in competition which are going to be voted by the public. The brief of the project is to promote a unified identity of the UEA to be used locally and internationally, as a way to portray a strong visual identity. Unlike other similar voting contests, this particular case presents a challenge for the design aspect since the logo needs to be both in Arabic and in English, making the cohesiveness of the design even more important- it has to work in both languages. Here are the competitors:
1. Brilliant Evolution
This entry goes for an abstract geometrical look using the Emirates' national colors. The actual Map of the country and the seven Emirates make up the basic shape of the symbol that's divided into 7 polygons in different shades to portray the sense of unity of the people within the country. The use of complex shapes (mostly triangles) is very trendy and gives a lot of freedom when it comes to applications of the brand as it can create complex patterns. Although an interesting proposal the typographic aspect of it doesn't look very well resolved as it creates awkward blank spaces that don't favor readability.
2. Fabric of Society
This logo design is inspired by the traditional textile production of the country. This proposal focuses on the typographic aspect, which is based on a geometrical structure conformed by 7 threads in the different national colors representing the 7 Emirates. The design itself is actually quite interesting- the very structured characters work well in both languages, achieving the cohesiveness of the logo. My own personal critique for this proposal has to be the typeface choice for the tagline, which doesn't really match the boldness of the isotype.
3. 'You can be anything'
This entry goes for a more contemporary look, relying on a simple logo with sober typographic work. The concept behind this proposal revolves around the future of the country, a symbol representative of the change, flexibility and continual growth that is the UAE of tomorrow. The 'U' of the logo isn't a static symbol but it transforms according to its application. In my opinion this is not the strongest design, it looks kind of sloppy and doesn't particularly portray a consistent and united image.
4. Vivid Tapestry
This particular entry is based on the rich heritage of the Emirates, using the traditional Kufi script as inspiration. It's a vibrant logo that relies on its geometrical structure of straight angles and interesting shapes. The result is an intriguing logo that despite being so abstract-looking is perfectly readable and definitely original. The use of strong colors (the only entry that doesn't use the national ones) and background patterns also add to the richness of it, combined with a simple typographic work for the tagline. Personally my favorite proposal -despite the intricate and almost excessive use of color- because of its originality and strong presence.
5. All-Encompassing
Based on the idea of an ever-changing country, this proposal aims to portray the constant state of dynamic evolution of the country. This is attempted by the use of this circular symbol composed by 7 concentric arcs in the national colors. Although a nice concept, the typographic work falls short to the execution as it doesn't really look like a unified logo- both versions in Arabic and English aren't as consistent as in other entries.
So what do you think should be the new logo for the UAE? You can vote for your favorite entry here!