Pawlenty of nothing
President Obama's campaign logo has been widely praised for its design sense and iconic effectiveness. Some of the right wing's more crazed conspiracy theorists have gone so far as to speculate on the logo's subliminal power and secret demonic message. Fortunately for these god-fearing Americans, they can take comfort in the right-thinking presidential campaign of the otherwise undistinguished Tim Pawlenty, the former governor of Minnesota who brags about his prudent stewardship and frugal management of the North Star State. It's clear from Pawlenty's recent announcement of his candidacy that he has made a considered decision to write off the votes of the graphics design and art community. In the first place, those voters are probably too inclined to the left to give Pawlenty much appreciation. In the second place, it gave the former governor's 15-year-old daughter a chance to design a presidential campaign logo. I suspect all that white space represents his core constituency. (The tattered-flag element is a nice touch. Prescient and precious.)
Postscript: Joseph Hughes at Northcoast Zeitgeist is the art director at an advertising agency in Ohio. He agrees that Pawlenty's logo is the worst of the current Republican crop. I feel vindicated! (I may not know campaign art, but I know what I don't like.)
