Eastman Kodak, the photography company founded by George Eastman in the late 19th century, has cycled through several distinct visual identities since its founding. The word “Kodak” itself was devised by Eastman and registered as a trademark in 1888; he favored the letter “K” as “a strong, incisive sort of letter.”[1]
Design and History
Kodak’s earliest logo, introduced in 1907, was a circular lettermark featuring the initials EKC (Eastman Kodak Company).[1] In the 1930s, the company shifted focus to the Kodak name itself and introduced its now-familiar red and yellow color palette.[1]
The most iconic element of Kodak’s identity, the red-and-yellow camera-shutter “K” symbol, was adopted in 1971. It was designed by graphic artist C. Peter Oestreich.[2] The mark retained the red and yellow colors and the Kodak name, but added a box and graphic “K” element.[3]
During the 1980s, the typeface of the Kodak name within the existing logo was streamlined with a more contemporary font.[3] The National Archives catalogue notes that Kodak’s logo was redesigned in 1987 to a sans serif typeface.[4]
In 2006, Kodak dropped the boxed “K” symbol altogether, replacing it with a simplified red wordmark designed by Ogilvy’s Brand Integration Group.[1] The new identity removed the yellow box and “K” graphic that had been in use since 1971, emphasizing the company name instead.[5]
In 2016, Kodak returned to its roots, reviving the 1971-era “K” symbol. New York design studio Work-Order was brought in to revisit the identity.[2] Work-Order preserved the original proportions of the “K” and its rounded-corner rectangle, but changed the lettering: the “Kodak” name is now set in bold capital letters and stacked vertically, evoking the sprocket holes on the edges of a roll of film.[2]
Meaning and Symbolism
Oestreich’s 1971 “K” symbol was designed with meaning hidden in plain sight. The two arms of the “K” were turned into beams of light, which could be read as light rays pouring into a camera viewfinder or projecting outward onto a screen. The red-and-yellow “K” thus illustrated the physics of photography itself.[2]
Kodak’s 2006 wordmark, by contrast, was intended to offer a more international and universal impact and to distance the company from its film and processing past.[1]
Typography and Design
Kodak’s 1987 redesign introduced a sans serif typeface for the company name.[4] The 2016 Work-Order identity set the “Kodak” letters in bold capitals, stacked vertically alongside the “K” symbol.[2]
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