Design sheet for the iconic 1964 Olympic logo unearthed

By Rosie Hilder
last updated

Discover the design secrets behind the Tokyo 1964 Olympic logo.

We all enjoy nerding out at a design sheet, and who doesn't love a good Olympic logo? This discovery from the Logo Smith combines the two: the design sheet for the Tokyo 1964 Olympic emblem. This logo was voted by design legend Milton Glaser as his favourite Olympic logo ever. 

The Tokyo 1964 Olympic logo was designed by Yusaku Kamekura and features a red sun representing the Japanese flag above the Olympic gold rings, with 'Tokyo 1964' written in Helvetica. Like all the best logos (opens in new tab), it's simple, but extremely effective. And of course, drawing the logo required precise measurements in the days before the likes of Illustrator (opens in new tab). 

You can see the Tokyo 1964 logo's design sheet below.

Tokyo Olympics 1964

(Image credit: Yusaku Kamekura)

The Logo Smith has attempted to painstakingly recreate the design sheet, and it turned out not to be easy (read his blog post about the sheet here (opens in new tab)).

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As we head towards the upcoming Tokyo 2020 Olympics, we can't help but wonder how this year's logo will be remembered. The original first logo design was scrapped due to plagiarism accusations, the official logo was then unveiled to a mixed reaction, and a concept logo (opens in new tab) received a lot of praise, with many saying it was better than the official one. The official recycled medals (opens in new tab) went down a treat, though.

Official Tokyo 2020 Olympics logos

The official Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic logos (Image credit: Asao Tokolo)

It remains to be seen just what the legacy of this particular logo is, but we do like the idea of people trying to painstakingly recreate it in years to come. Let's hope there's already a detailed design sheet in circulation.

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Rosie Hilder
Rosie Hilder

Rosie Hilder is Creative Bloq's Deputy Editor. After beginning her career in journalism in Argentina – where her blogging prowess led her to become Deputy Editor of Time Out Buenos Aires – she moved back to the UK and joined Future Plc in 2016. Since then, she's worked as Operations Editor on art and design magazines, including Computer Arts, 3D World and Paint & Draw, and got the 'Apple bug' when working on US title, Mac|Life. In 2018, she left the world of print behind and moved to Creative Bloq, where she helps take care of the daily management of the site, including growing the site's reach through trying to please the Google Gods, getting involved in events, such as judging the Brand Impact Awards, and helping make sure its content serves its readers as best it can. Her interests lie in branding and illustration, tech and sexism, and plenty more in-between.

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