Olympic Design: Canada’s Souvenirs

SI.com has enlisted the help of the bloggers behind Canadian Design Resource to author a series of posts on the design spirit of their country’s three Olympic Games: Montreal 1976, Calgary 1988, and Vancouver 2010. Today, CDR’s Michael Erdmann and Todd Falkowsky take a look at Canada’s Olympic souvenirs:

Souvenirs represent a huge portion of Olympic business, and the right to manufacture and sell official Olympic swag is aggressively protected. The sheer volume of souvenirs at the Games is overwhelming (VANOC’s official 2010 web store lists over 400 official pins alone), but here’s a small taste of them through the years:

Montreal 1976: Souvenir Tray & Sport Glasses
COJO 76 Graphics and Design Directorate, Oranamin & Tasco

(Tray photo: Roan John Barrion – modernlovedesign.com / Camera photo: Alex Seth)

Montreal 1976: Souvenir Plate
COJO 76 Graphics and Design Directorate

(COJO 76)

Souvenirs from the Montreal Olympics are evidence of the Games in transition. There’s a deliberate tension between traditionalism and modernism; some of the designs emphasized the classical, athletic aspects of the Games, while others showed off the flair of the city’s new architecture and youth culture. Drawing on International Style typography (and owing an obvious debt to Otl Aicher’s designs for the 1972 Munich Games), the Montreal Games were permeated by a distinctive “Canadian modernism.”

This graphic style was applied to a huge range of objects from posters to luggage, and disposable lighters to high-end ceramics (from regal brands like Wedgwood and Royal Copenhagen). Montreal’s Graphics and Design Directorate oversaw and approved every application, ensuring that each piece inherited the same well considered qualities.

Calgary 1988: Skating Star Barbie
Mattel, OCO

(OCO)

Calgary marked the beginning of a few trends that would come to dominate Olympic design. In contrast to Montreal’s International Style, these games returned to a regional aesthetic, referencing local forms and Western themes. Applying now-familiar marketing tools, Calgary abandoned the exclusiveness of past Olympics and positioned the games as a mass-culture event. Popular brands like Mattel and Coca-Cola participated in the games like never before.

Calgary 1988/Vancouver 2010: Olympic Glassware
Petro-Canada, OCO/VANOC

Perhaps the best example of Calgary’s populist approach is the Petro-Canada glassware campaign. In the lead-up to the 1988 Games, Petro-Canada, one of Canada’s largest oil companies (and a government-owned company at the time) launched an extensive campaign, selling a line of souvenir glassware in support of Canada’s Olympic athletes. The project was a massive sensation, selling more than 50 million glasses — almost double the Canadian population in 1988. Despite this success, the design itself was rather humble. Perhaps this contributed to the accessibility of the campaign, but in the decades that followed the Games, the glasses have become ubiquitous dust collectors. Petro-Canada had significantly lower expectations for the 2010 glass campaign, but this recent television commercial perfectly captures the phenomenon.

Vancouver 2010: Mascot Backpacks
HBC, VANOC, Meomi

(Michael Francis McCarthy - flickr.com/photos/sagamiono)

While the quality of design has improved, in many ways Vancouver’s souvenirs continue the populist tradition of the Calgary games. Rather than focusing on the Games themselves with representations of athletic endeavors, the emphasis today is on desirability and capturing the spirit of the event. In addition to the now-familiar blue-and-green color scheme and those adorable mascots, we find strategic dashes of Canadiana. Well-known Canadian designs, including the toque (knitted cap), parka and knitted sweater (unfortunately not a real Cowichan sweater), and even products like maple syrup are all given the Olympic treatment — an aesthetic that’s distinctive, yet familiar and accessible to global audiences.

Vancouver 2010: Maple Syrup
HBC, VANOC, Meomi

(Michael Francis McCarthy - http://www.flickr.com/photos/sagamiono)

Vancouver 2010: Torchbearer’s Mittens
Vivienne Lu and Tu Ly, HBC/VANOC

(HBC/VANOC)

Originally created for the official torchbearer’s uniform, the Hudson’s Bay Company’s red mittens have become the much-talked-about hit of the Games. It’s difficult to pinpoint exactly why the design has struck such a chord, though the strategically placed maple leaf — hidden inside the palm and only revealed with a wave or a victorious cheer — seems to strike the right humble/patriotic balance with Canadian audiences. Too bad the patriotism didn’t carry through their production; like most contemporary souvenirs, the mittens are manufactured in China.