Another university seal bites the dust

I have written about this phenomenon in 2011.  Now the University of California system, one of the most esteemed universities on earth, which includes UC Berkeley and UCLA, fell for this.

University of California Identity from University of California on Vimeo.

The reactions are very negative, to say the least.

Newser reports: "When the University of California unveiled its new logo, it probably wasn't expecting students and alumni reacting by Photoshopping it onto pictures of toilets about to be flushed. But that's exactly what happened."

And it unfortunately looks like a toilet with swirling water as it is being flushed.

What is interesting about this university rebranding trend of recent years is that (as amply illustrated here in the video) universities keep striking out symbols of learning (the book), intelligence (the rays of light), and tradition (1868, the founding year -- which is ancient by a West Coast standard) and coming up with the kind of designs only appropriate for mass merchandise (in the video, this is perhaps subconsciously demonstrated by a tote bag, flip-flops and a mug).

To make it worse, the colour scheme makes it all cheapened.

Perhaps in the brains of designers, the swirling "C" might have represented the moving circle that symbolizes a dynamic movement; but where does one see this moving, swirling, spinning "C" symbol?  On a computer screen, it is a symbol of "loading please wait."  In this age of broadband access and fast computing, such a symbol represents frustration.