On Thu, 21 Dec 2000 23:21:56 EST "David E. Haberstich"
<[log in to unmask]> writes:

> Let me stipulate that David Haynes is pulling our collective leg
> when he says he seldom disagrees with me.  He and I disagree as often
as we
> agree, it seems to me, and have enjoyed numerous private e-mail
debates.

No, actually I meant it. But I do see the problem. I usually agree 100%
with David's positions and therefore don't bother to post. We do,
however, have different ideas on a few matters--this being one of them.

>  I suspect that his  secret agenda is to clutter credit panels with
such a miasma of logos that
> the public will run screaming to their legislators, demanding 100% tax
support in
> order to drive logomaniacs from public view.  (If I've  misinterpreted
his
> previous position or jumped to an unwarranted conclusion, I'm sure  he
won't
> be shy about clarifying.)

Well, no, that didn't occur to me, but now that you mention it . . .
Actually, in my ideal world there is a place for corporate sponsorships.
Corporations would be allowed (even encouraged) to sponsor particular
projects that would be in addition to everything that the institution
would normally be doing. As a result the project would have to be staffed
100% by contract folks and everything else needed for the project would
be paid for by the sponsor. The project director (paid for by the sponsor
but responsible to the institution's management) would have total control
of the project. OK, it would never work, but I said it was in an ideal
world.

> Again, I say, people and organizations who don't have nifty logos with
an
> instant recognition quotient are at a disadvantage in the  credit-panel
> sweepstakes.  Anyone who expects to fund a museum exhibit should
> design a nifty logo now.  Don't go logoless.

This doesn't bother me one little bit. Some organizations employ good
design and others don't. It has practically nothing to do with how much
money is available; it has to do with how much talent and knowledge is
available and whether the boss is willing to let the talented and
knowledgeable do their jobs.

> If the issue is readability on credit panels, however, I must say I
> find plain text a heckuva lot easier to read than fancy logos which
need
> to be decoded.

The issue is not exactly readability. Rather it is ease of communication.
Obviously there are logos that are not instantly recognizable by most
museum visitors. Including such a logo would not help the viewer. I was
thinking of this matter in the context of Coca-Cola or IBM or AT&T or CBS
or (well, you get the idea). I think you must agree that the logos of
these widely advertised firms are well known in our society. So, a glance
at the credit panel will give me the information that Coke put up the
money, and I don't have to read the little bitty type. If the logo is
unfamiliar, I do have to read the type, but I really haven't lost much
time. However . . .

>  I'm not interested in viewing credit panels that look like laundry
> lists in hieroglyphics.

Here, we definitely agree.

>  So I'm not convinced that logos are easier for everyone to read if
> they just want information.  I liked T. W. Moran's comment about
"globule"
> corporatization.  A nice turn of phrase, that.  When I see too many
> logos on a credit panel, I think that's what they look like--globules.

                                                  and
> About my subject line: In trying to think of--or coin--a word to
connote
> logo-clutter, logorrhea came to mind.  Possibly an example of a false
> cognate, or playing fast and loose with facile suffixes, it doesn't
work
> because it already means something else.

Ah, maybe that's one of the reasons we differ. I can't recall seeing an
exhibit that had more than two commercial logos on the credit panel (and
the norm for the stuff I've seen has been one). In addition, there is the
institutional logo and maybe a government funder--but four is, I believe,
the most I have ever seen. I suspect I would agree with you in the case
of a credit panel with a larger number of logos.

And now, I believe that I will retire from the field as well. I wish
y'all a pleasant winter solstice season. Best.  David

David Haynes     [log in to unmask]      San Antonio

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