Explore the Cosmos with S.E.L.A. by Davide Mascioli
As the design industry becomes more and more saturated, it’s becoming increasingly important to document and preserve examples of exceptional design. Many are taking on this effort head-on, with grassroots design archives ensuring that these design resources are preserved for everyone to enjoy. One such design archive is the Space Exploration Logo Archive (S.E.L.A.) initiated by Italian designer and art director Davide Mascioli.
S.E.L.A. sits between Davide’s two passions; design and space exploration. As the name suggests, this archive documents the various logos associated with space exploration organizations, missions (both robotic and human missions), and even space exploration logos in science-fiction. Davide had long developed the habit of ‘collecting’ logos that caught his eye. Initially, the project was something he created for himself, but he quickly realized that it was important for the archive to be free and accessible to all. “I was excited about the idea of creating an archive where anyone could enjoy them…I felt it was the right way to pay homage and honor all the designers who have contributed to making me passionate about this subject,” Davide explained. The archive is incredibly comprehensive, not limiting itself to well-known space exploration logos, whether publicly or privately owned, in the west like NASA and Elon Musk’s SpaceX. In fact, the collection draws from organizations and missions based all around the globe including Indonesia’s very own INASA (Indonesian Space Agency), locally known as LAPAN. Each logo on the website is presented with a brief description and a free download link for all visitors.
The research process for this particular archive took Davide over a year and was the most time-consuming phase of the project, which comes as no surprise with the collection spanning over 80 years worth of logos. “Initially I estimated to collect around 150 logos in total, but in the end I ended up with more than 400!” Davide revealed. Once Davide gets his hands on a sample of a new addition to the archive, he carefully redraws each logo with vector graphics before adding it to the website. Throughout the research process, Davide found that 80% of the logos in S.E.L.A. shared common visual elements. According to him, these elements can be clustered into six separate categories: ring, globe, wireframe, rocket, star and delta. Davide also found that while most of the logos he collected responded to the basic design rules of simplicity and recognizability, the logos of space missions, particularly human space missions, were richer in visual elements. “More than logos, in fact, they are emblems, which often, as in the case of NASA missions, are used for patches and badges.”
Interestingly, the archive did not limit itself to real logos in use worldwide. A whole section of S.E.L.A. is dedicated to various familiar logos from our favorite science-fiction films, shows, and books, including the Starfleet logo from Star Trek, the Galactic Empire logo from Star Wars, the House Atreides emblem from Dune, and more. “I wanted the project to be complete,” Davide began to explain, “and it felt right that the fictional logos should be there, not only that, science fiction often anticipated technologies, and many times even defined their aesthetics. Not putting them in would have meant not recognising their value.”
As an extension of the archive, Davide has launched a S.E.L.A. book project. Davide envisioned the book as something he himself would love to own. A multi-capter archive, the book is split into five mini books organized into eight thematic chapters. While the extensive archive is available to access digitally, Davide found it important to create something tangible. “As a designer, 90% of what I do now stays in the digital world, so with this project I wanted to go back to the roots. I decided to do a Kickstarter campaign and the response from the community was outstanding, with the project being more than 200% funded,” Davide explained. The book will be published in conjunction with independent Italian risograph publisher Oreri-Iniziativa Editoriale with. “When I chose to do the zine I had two basic prerequisites: it had to be printed in risograph and on recycled Fedrigoni paper. I chose Oreri not only because it could satisfy these two requirements, but above all because I immediately found an affinity with their philosophy in their work and the causes they support and promote,” Davide explained. The Kickstarter campaign has concluded successfully, however, those still interested in backing the project can still contribute with several available rewards like sticker sets and risograph posters.
Projects like S.E.L.A. are incredibly important in keeping design history alive. Not only is the archive a project that is clearly close to Davide’s heart, it is also an incredible appreciation of graphic design in the space exploration sector. S.E.L.A. is also an amazing resource for all designers to look to for design inspiration. “The project is aimed at everyone from designers to space enthusiasts, and I really hope that it will inspire a future full of enthusiasm for space exploration. I also hope it will help discover hidden gems for even the most experienced designer… Above all, I would like the site to continue to evolve in the future, adding logos and maintaining a connection with the community. In addition to the great support I have received for the zine, I have already gotten a lot of feedback for new stuff to add!” If you have a space exploration logo that has not been listed in S.E.L.A., you can send them Davide’s way here to help grow the archive.
