New look for Hartsfield-Jackson
By Amy Schneider

Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport is looking a little different these days — at least when it appears in print. The Airport’s executive staff has adopted a new graphic treatment of the Airport’s name and logo as part of a rebranding campaign.

“The goal is for Hartsfield-Jackson to have a more unified look and feel in print, web, presentation materials and everywhere that the logo is displayed,” said Airport graphic designer Tracy McCutchion, who spearheaded the project. “A strong brand is built through consistency, and establishing brand guidelines will allow us and our vendors to know how to use our logo, colors, fonts and overall style in a correct manner.”

In addition to a logo treatment that uses a simpler, cleaner-looking font and larger type for the “Hartsfield-Jackson” portion of the name, the branding work involves color waves that appear on printed documents.
 
“The color wave is a graphic element that represents waves of air, movement and connection, with its overlapping shapes. It was created to graphically unite our visuals,” McCutchion said.
 
McCutchion sought feedback and input from several other employees as part of the in-house effort. She ultimately decided on subtle changes, rather than an entirely new logo, in order to make the transition less jarring and to capitalize on the Airport’s existing brand familiarity.
 
Large-scale replacements of signage and other items that bear the Airport’s name and logo also would be costly, she said, adding that the previous logo and other branding will be phased out over time as older items need to be replaced.

This design illustrates the color waves and the Airport's new logo.

The Airport's new logo adds emphasis to the Hartsfield-Jackson portion of the name.