Any Qs: Michael Wolff

Michael Wolff[Answers are here]

Date: Friday, October 19.

Michael Wolff, co-founder of design and brand agency Wolff Olins will be speaking at the PLUS International Design Festival at the Wild Building in Birmingham.

The event is free, but if you can’t make it and have a burning question, let me know!

Mr Wolff is considered one of the creators of brand identity and has worked with a number of high-profile companies to help shape their public image.

Although he left Wolff Olins in 1983, he has also shown strong public support for the infamous Olympic 2012 logo, which the company reportedly created at a cost of £400,000.

At the moment I’m planning to ask him about the process of creating trust through a brand identity. He was responsible for the so-called “greening” of BP and the aligning of its brand with renewable energy production. Also, how easy is it to rebuild trust in a brand after a crisis (such as Northern Rock, perhaps)?

Of course, they’ll be the inevitable question about the 2012 logo too, I’m sure.

5 thoughts on “Any Qs: Michael Wolff

  1. Pingback: Created in Birmingham » Blog Notes

  2. Hi.

    I’m a third year graphic design student at Nottingham Trent and am coming down for the lecture tomorrow. I’m currently researching for my dissertation which is about why the 2012 logo caused so much controversy… I saw this post and thought it could be a great opportunity to get some questions answered if I am unable to get them answered myself.

    Why does Michael think the 2012 logo caused so much controversy? And was this something he planned/ considered when designing it?

    Much of the tabloid response was negative, does he consider this good publicity in the grand scheme of things?

    Why did Michael choose such a contemporary style of design over a more classic and uniformed style like that of Aicher’s ’72 Munich design?

  3. Hi Nick and prem1um,

    Thanks for your questions, I have added them to the list!

    Nick: I think Michael Wolff left Wolff Olins in the early 1980s, so I’m not sure he actually designed the logo. However, the company still bears his name so I imagine he has an opinion on it (and has been quoted in newspapers defending it).

    Any more questions out there? You have until Friday morning!

  4. Pingback: Answers: Michael Wolff « Joanna Geary

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *