Classroom Resources

Did You Know: The Smithsonian Logo

The next time you’re at one of the amazing Smithsonian museums in Washington, D.C. – or reading Smithsonian Magazine, or, really, doing anything with our friends at Smithsonian– take a few minutes to pay some extra attention to the Smithsonian logo.

It’s this one:

Simple enough, right? Of course, there’s much more to it! So we asked our friends at Smithsonian for more information. Here are a few facts worth sharing:

Has this version always been The Smithsonian logo?

Nope. It’s an update to a version that came out in the 1960’s. This one was rolled out in 1998 and has been used ever since. The artist behind it, Ivan Chermayeff, did a lot of other cool stuff, too. You can read more about him here.

Why a sun?

So many reasons. It represents light, knowledge, enlightenment, strength, resolve, consistency, and lots and lots of other words. It also gives a visual to The Smithsonian’s mission, “For the increase and diffusion of knowledge…”And you may have already noticed this, but the sun itself, to put it mildly, is a pretty big deal. Just like The Smithsonian.

Light has been used to represent The Smithsonian since way back to the late 19^th century. Check out the torches on the original Smithsonian seal by Augustus Saint-Gaudens (they’re on the sides).

Want to read more?

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/one-under-the-sun-155647928/

https://siarchives.si.edu/blog/marketing-and-smithson-bicentennial