MTV, originally Music Television, launched on August 1, 1981, and its logo became one of the most recognizable marks in television history. The identity was designed by the New York collective Manhattan Design, comprising Frank Olinsky, Pat Gorman, and Patti Rogoff, under the guidance of MTV’s first creative director, Fred Seibert. [1] [2]
Design and History
Seibert, who joined the fledgling cable channel in May 1980, hired his longtime friend Frank Olinsky and his studio Manhattan Design to create the logo. The process took about a year and involved roughly 500 rejected sketches before the final mark was approved. [1] Early concepts included a cartoon hand holding a musical note, which was rejected by management, and a stylized serif reading “MTV” that Seibert later called “awful.” [3]
According to Seibert’s account, Manhattan Design partner Patti Rogoff came up with the “M,” while Frank Olinsky drew the “TV” in response to prevailing “new wave” design trends. Olinsky spray-painted the “TV,” drips and all, in the Manhattan Design stairwell. [4] The original 1981 mark featured a yellow “M” with a red “TV.” [5] [6]
From its conception, the logo had no fixed color scheme. Manhattan Design deliberately avoided suggesting official corporate colors, thinking the logo could be a “living logo” that changed every time it was shown. [5] [7] This flexibility allowed the “M” to be filled with any texture, pattern, color, or image while maintaining recognition through its consistent shape and proportions. Seibert and his creative partner Alan Goodman commissioned young, independent animators to create on-air variations, with a simple rule: make sure the “M” is the center of attention. [8]
The logo’s first redesign came in 1994, with structural tweaks that flattened the height and made the block lettering chunkier, while maintaining the overall playful character of the mark. [3]
In February 2010, MTV dropped the words “Music Television” from its logo, a change the network said reflected that viewers no longer referred to the channel by that name. [9] The 2010 redesign, created by MTV World Design Studio Milan and Universal Everything, produced a squashed, wider version of the mark suited to 16:9 widescreen formats. [10] [11]
For MTV’s 40th anniversary in 2021, the agency Loyalkaspar introduced a new brand identity system featuring a three-color logo that evoked the brand’s classic mark. The system was built around the famous shape of the “M” taking on different personalities, with a motion language and library of custom patterns inspired by the brand’s graphic heritage. [12] [13]
Meaning and Symbolism
The graffiti-style “TV” drew on the prevailing new wave design trends of the early 1980s. [4] Seibert explained that the giant “M” was chosen to dominate the screen, filling every inch of the old 4:3 television frame. He described his goal as making the “M” the star, a constant visual signpost that would outlast any individual musician or artist. [8]
Typography and Design
Loyalkaspar, the agency behind the 2021 identity system, also designed a custom typeface for MTV called Gravity. According to Anna Minkkinen, Executive Creative Director at Loyalkaspar, the typeface was named because it acts like a force that helps hold together the brand’s world across platforms. [12] [13]
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