David got in touch while he was preparing the book. He had seen a proposal I’d shared for Left, a software product for logistics and transportation, and asked whether he could include it.
The project came through FlyDesign, an agency in Chicago. Left and the related Aurora direction grew from the same ideas, developed in late 2017. The client settled on Left in 2018.
The brief called for something strong and established, but also logical, efficient, and technical. It had to suit software intended to make complicated operational work easier. The logo needed to suggest that without trying to illustrate everything the product did.
The wordmark uses a left-facing arrowhead as a repeated element in the construction of L, E, F, and T. The letters have different shapes, but follow the same geometric rule. Instead of putting a separate arrow next to the name, the direction is built into the lettering.
That connects the design to both the name and the field it belongs to. It suggests movement and routing without drawing a road or a vehicle. Just as importantly, it still reads as Left. The idea should not get in the way of recognizing the name.
The mark also needed to work in a dashboard, on a business card, and in other settings where the surrounding visual language could change. The lettering gives it something consistent to carry between those applications.
Its placement in the book feels appropriate to me. In black and white, you can see how the letters are constructed and how they relate to each other. The directional idea is there without needing the rest of an identity around it.
That is also how I tend to judge this kind of logo. Color and applications matter, but I want the mark to work before they are introduced. Looking at it on its own makes it easier to judge whether the lettering and the idea are doing enough, rather than being carried by the presentation.
I’m pleased to have Left included in the book. Seeing it in this section brings the attention back to the lettering, which is still the part of the project I find most interesting.