Early concept for the EPCOT logo?

Looking through the macro photos I took of some of the concept art from the EPCOT25 exhibit, I noticed this concept treatment for Spaceship Earth...





And of course, being the prism/fountain geek that I am, I took a super macro photo of the original fountain prism plans, with a prism representing each pavilion...





And being the EPCOT symbol geek that I am, I took a super-duper macro of that portion of the fountain and LO AND BEHOLD...





So... the question is... Did the concept painter (didn't catch who did this concept art) just leave the mini globe out of the center for simplicity's sake... or did original plans for the EPCOT logo include a regular star in the center rather than the mini globe?

Anybody know?

That's an interesting question and observation. I'd have to guess the globe was a part of it all along, considering the strong basis of the park in the concept of "world," a la Future / World / Showcase. The question would become, then, was the globe merely a replacement for a star? What would a star signify? Or would the star simply have been an early aesthetic idea, nothing more, nothing less?

I'd have to say that the star does give the logo a certain appeal, which I'm sure would be trendy even today. I can think of many instances in which modern day companies, retailers, television shows, etc. use stars as part of their branding schemes. And it's a lot better than the logo currently in use, which is not a logo but a mere logotype! I give it an A+ in any event, whether or not it was ever seriously considered, whether or not it was an artist's whim for a single piece of concept art, whether or not anybody else loves the old logo or loathes it!

From: http://www.wdwmagic.com/facts!.htm

Logo, Epcot
The logo symbolizes unity, fellowship and harmony around the world. The five outer rings are linked to form the shape of a flower - a celebration of life. The heart of the logo represents the Earth embraced by a star symbolizing hope - the hope that with imagination, commitment and dedication we can create a better tomorrow.

Click to expand...

The star is mentioned in the official description....
:shrug:

Yeah, but I'm wondering if that was the stylistic star-ish shape made by the rings (which at the same time is also a flower-ish shape). :hammer:

Also, got to thinking... if Mr. Concept Art was just taking the lazy way out to avoid painting the mini globe thingy, then why wouldn't he just draw five whole circles, instead of making the effort to split the circles in the center to make a star. Hrm... Points to ponder.

Nice pix Jackie....and a nice bit a sleuth work too!

I would say that the "globe" image was probably there right from the start, as Marty mentioned about it during the presentation i was at on the 1st.

I always liked how the original logos for WDW and EPCOT Center related to each other well as they both incorporated the linework "globe" image....one with ears, one surrounded by the rings.

The rings can symbolize so much, depending on who is veiwing it really. The original intention MatPez noted above in the official statement about it...but i always thought it looked not only like a "unity" symbol, but also reminisent of space with the whirling planets, solar systems, etc.

One time back in 86 or so i wore my EPCOT logo t-shirt to school and my science teacher went crazy over it. He was clueless to WDW in some sense, and the EPCOT logo was all new to him. He was convinced it was ment to represent atoms racing around a nucleus. Being 15 or so, i thought he was nuts and was just trying to hit on me ( LOL!)....later on though what he said made more sense.

So it's cool how it can be interupted many different ways. Always a sure sign of art in it's truest form!

By the way....since we are on the subject of the EPCOT logo...and the star in particular contained within it..

Anyone here pick up on the fact that the WDI 50th Anniversary gold EPCOT Center logo pin has the famous icon UPSIDE-DOWN??

Shocking i know...but it's true: Check it out sometime on eBay, or your own pin collection if you have this gem. The classic logo is wrong! The star is pointing "up" when in reality it should be "down"!

So one has to wonder...how could Disney goof that up?

:lol:

Ironically I`ve just tidied up that very same image - took a 7mp still of it!

marni1971 said:

Ironically I`ve just tidied up that very same image - took a 7mp still of it!

Click to expand...

I hope your photos turned out better than some of mine. I really needed a tripod and a few softboxes to do what I wanted to do, but instead it's the wonderful world of shaky, blurry, poorly lit macros. I had maybe three that turned out "studio quality."

great find jackie.... that is great.