Why “The Big Game 59” art direction may signal a shift in design.

From the simplest of score bugs (that constant scoreboard tally at the bottom of the screen) to intricate colours and funky type, 59 offered an array of design choices that just might be the shape of things to come.

Let’s start with the unique logo design. It marks the first time the NFL has hired an outside designer to create the game logo and it sets the stage for a beautiful pallet of colours and shapes that reflect Louisiana.

Tahj Williams is the talented artist and you can see her story from this recent clip from Good Morning America.

Caesar’s Superdome also got a wrap around that featured distorted type and swatches of colours and bits of floating triangles that felt like a modern interpretation of 1990’s graphic design.

And then there was the FOX design system that really embraced the colours and French Quarter influences with rich purples and ornate gold framing, which worked as a perfect background for the high contrast illustration style used to profile players and their stats.

In recent years, design has really become simplified. Traditional, ornate company logos have been, in my opinion, paired down and simplified so much, that many have lost all character. And it may be that these complicated design elements that FOX employed are simply a reflection of the city, but it could also be signalling a time to once again add flavour and colour and texture to graphic design.

Having said that, the scoreboard could not have been reduced more to its basic function.

This score bug has been criticized today in some circles, but I think it’s great. It’s all about function. No team logos that you need to be familiar with in order to tell which team is which (or worse, small sections of team logos that you can barely make out), a practice that’s been in place for quite a while.

Instead we have a design with User Experience in mind. Watching on a tiny screen or in a sports bar, you get the info you need at a glance.

The game is a spectacle and this year was no exception. I mean, it was a terrible game (it often is) but it was quite pretty to look at.