Gov. Spencer Cox didn’t sound Tuesday like much of a fan of the new Utah 2034 logo for the state’s next Winter Games, even though he presided over its unveiling a day earlier at the Salt Lake City International Airport.
“I understand some of the criticism of the logo for sure. It’s been kind of fun, and funny, to watch some of that,” Cox told reporters during the taping of the Governor’s Monthly News Conference on PBS Utah.
The abstract logo, intended to reflect the state’s natural wonders as well as the shapes carved by winter athletes in snow and ice, has been criticized as hard to read and more appropriate for the Stone Age or even a “Flintstones” cartoon.
While the governor said the story behind the unusual font created for what’s also the new name for the 2034 Winter Games is “fascinating,” he seems to share some of the concerns spreading across social media.
“Look, I get the criticism. I’m not an expert when it comes to this kind of stuff for sure. I’m a conservative so, you know, it’s not the most conservative logo. But there are worse things out there to worry about than a logo,” Cox said.
“It’s just bold. It’s very bold, is what I mean. I’m not trying to make it like a right versus left thing,” he quickly added. “I’m a little old fashioned and it’s certainly a bold logo. And that’s great. I think bold is cool, I guess. That’s what the kids tell me, anyway.”
Still, the governor managed to highlight something about the design.
“I love that it’s got people talking,” Cox said. “We could have done Times New Roman (font) and called it a day and nobody would have said anything. But at least people are talking about the logo and it’s getting a lot of attention.”
The state leader joked that he’s “really grateful that the logo has united Utah. It’s really brought people together because everyone seems to not like it. It’s great to see the way it really, really brought us together. Sometimes, that’s what it takes.”
Cox quickly added that the logo may not be around forever.
“It is a transition logo so the final logo won’t come out until 2029,” the governor said. “So everybody can get their feedback in and your voice will be heard.”
The new name no longer includes Salt Lake City, the host of the 2002 Winter Games, a decision Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall said “stings.” But Cox said it had nothing to do with tensions over the years between the more liberal capital city and state leaders.
“There was nothing political about it. There was no intention whatsoever to harm Salt Lake City in any way. In fact, the city will be able to use the logo with ‘Salt Lake City’ underneath it and that’s really important,” Cox said.
The decision to make these Utah’s Winter Games “came from the feedback that we’ve gotten over the past 20 plus years from cities and counties all over the state, that the events aren’t just held in Salt Lake City,” he said.
There’s a need, the governor said, “to really unify the state and bring everybody together. We want everyone to feel included in this Olympics.”
Plus, a shorter name is also better from a branding perspective, he said.
“Any branding expert will tell you that it’s also a really great decision having a four-letter and four-number logo,” Cox said. “It makes sense. It just gives you so many more options. It’s easier to display. It looks better bigger, all those types of things.”