Journal Entry #3

For the theme of this entry, I chose chain restaurant signs. I think almost all of the restaurants I went to had decent signs that were pleasing to the eye and successful in terms of graphic design. IHOP, the first restaurant, had a successful sign by using formal element of shape and the design principle of repetition. The word “IHOP” almost makes a rectangle, but the tail of the “P” has to hang down in order for circle inside of the “P” to match up with the circle inside of the “O”.  Chili’s, which also has a sign made of letters, uses balance and repetition to create an eye-catching sign. The bottom of the letter “h” connects to the bottom of the letter “l” creating balance, but also a bit of repetition since both letters have ascenders. Subway uses repetition in its sign by having an arrow on each end of its logo. Burger King’s logo is unique because it uses suggestive type to make the words look like a patty between two buns. In my opinion, Chipotle’s sign lacked creativity because the lettering was so simple. Popeye’s sign was more creative because not all letters were the same, like the P’s were both different. Arby’s sign is also unique, with an outline of a cowboy hat behind the lettering. Pizza Hut uses contrasting colors to make it stand out to the viewer. I liked Wendy’s sign because it used old-fashioned letters which were put into an interesting shape. Denny’s sign is rather plain but the shape of the sign makes it stand out from others. The Long John Silver’s sign stands out with the use of contrasting colors and a bright yellow background. Another sign that had a yellow background was Filiberto’s, but this was not a good sign in my opinion and the lettering could have been much better. Taco Bell has a simple yet effective sign because of the use of symmetry in the bell icon. The McDonald’s sign, which is probably one of the most recognized signs in the world, is both simple and symmetrical. Panda Express’s sign, which is the last one, is successful because it using contrasting colors and overall the sign is well balanced.