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| Source: http://www.google.com/logos/queensday10-hp.gif |
225th Birthday of Karl Drais
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| Source: http://www.google.com/logos/karldrais-hp.gif |
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| Karl Drais ca 1820, then still a baron |
ANZAC Day
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| New Zealand - Source: http://www.google.com/logos/anzac10_nz-hp.gif |
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| Australia - Source: http://www.google.com/logos/anzac10_au-hp.gif |
The Art of Google Doodles
At Google's Silicon Valley corporate headquarters, the artists painting on digital canvases are producing works of art that will be viewed by millions... but disappear in just 24 hours.
They are the creators of Google's Doodles, the often playful illustrations that regularly transform Google's home page to mark things like holidays... famous birthdays... and notable discoveries and inventions.
If you happened to visit Google any time yesterday, you saw a celebration of the 20th anniversary of the launch of the Hubble space telescope.
"Just doing a little rough sketch where things are going to go, and hope that the engineers at NASA do not check this for authenticity,” said Micheal Lopez, who was creating the Hubble Doodle the day we visited Google.
"Space will be back here, and the Earth horizon behind it, so you can get the sense that it's doing its orbits around the Earth,” he said. “One quick, little brushstroke. I think that's good."
Lopez leads the team of Google Doodle designers, four artists whose work is seen not only on Google's American website, but on Google home pages for more than 100 countries around the world.
Ryan Germick was creating the Doodle that appeared on Google's British website Friday - St. George's Day, honoring the dragon-slaying knight.
"St. George's day is important,” Germich said. "My father's name is George. So, you know, that's a little special personal interest to me."
Jennifer Hom is working on a Doodle for Google's Czech website.
"It's the birthday of Komensky; he was an educator in the Czech Republic," she said.
Susie Sahim is creating a doodle for the Google home page in Spain for the birthday of a renowned naturalist.
"His name is Felix Rodriguez de la Fuente,” Sahim said. “So the sun is creating the O. And the two wolves together make the G. And his body much more vertical, making the L."
The doodlers take their art seriously. Jennifer Hom said Rembrandt, Caravaggio and Van Dyke were good reference points for the style used in their Doodles.
From emulating the masters to imitating cartoons, Sahim says the Doodlers do it all.
"We could do acrylic, we could do, you know, oil pastel," Sahim said. "There's all kinds of possibilities out there."
"You can make this logo look like it's been made out of anything," Blackstone said.
"Yeah, pretty much," said Sahim.
During this year's winter Olympics, Google Doodles recognized a different event every day.
And when “Sesame Street” turned 40 last year, Muppets moved onto Google home pages around the world.
The doodlers come up with ideas in casual pitch meetings, largely based on the calendar and what’s going on in the world, looking for ideas they call “Googley” - art, science and technology, steering clear of anything too commercial or political.
Google Doodles have become an online art extravaganza, but the first doodle, put up by company founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin in 1998, was much simpler - a tribute to the Burning Man Festival.
Dennis Hwang, one of the earliest Google workers, was a student intern when Page and Brin noticed he could draw and suggested he dress up the logo.
"For the first six or seven years, I was pretty much the only one creating these designs," he said.
"My first one was for Bastille Day, I think in year 2000,” he said. “And I remember nervously putting up what I think of now as a very, very rudimentary, simple design."
In those days Doodles appeared only occasionally. Hwang was doing something that in many companies would be forbidden: Altering the logo.
"The first rule is leave the company identity alone, keep it consistent,” Hwang said. “You look at Coca-Cola or McDonalds or Starbucks, anywhere in the world, and the symbols you see are very consistent."
But Hwang kept playing with Google's logo, even as it was becoming more famous.
“Larry and Sergey like to challenge conventional wisdom,” Hwang said, “so they asked the question: ‘Hey, why not have fun with our company branding and logo?’”
Of course, sometimes the logo doesn't seem to "say" Google at all, like one marking the invention of the bar code, and only those who know Braille could read what the Doodle marking Louis Braille's birthday said.
"I think one of the things we try to do is make sure that you can actually see the Google logo, every single time,” said Germick. “I know there's been some concepts that I've done where, you know, these guys are scratching their heads, going, ‘Where does it say Google?’”
In the annual competition "Doodle 4 Google," kids are invited to submit their own Doodles, with $15,000 awarded for a college scholarship fund.
"But I think the biggest thing of all, that's really exciting for the kids, is the fact that they get their Doodle put on our home page for hundreds of millions of people to see,” said Lopez.
One Doodler laughed, “I saw some ‘Doodle 4 Google’ winners, and I was, like, Wow, I need to step up my game!”
The Doodles seem to be getting more ambitious all the time, using animation for Sir Isaac Newton's birthday this year. And for Halloween, Ryan Germick created a Doodle that was a trick... as well as a treat.
"If you clicked on it, then the whole logo became candy,” he said. “And then, if you clicked on it again, there was just a big, huge pile of candy. You couldn't see the logo anymore."
"And if you clicked on it another time, it was just wrappers, you know?"
The Doodles make opening Google’s homepage a little like unwrapping candy... there may be a surprise inside.
This year’s winning “Doodle 4 Google” design will be featured on Google’s homepage on May 27, 2010.
[via CBS News]
They are the creators of Google's Doodles, the often playful illustrations that regularly transform Google's home page to mark things like holidays... famous birthdays... and notable discoveries and inventions.
If you happened to visit Google any time yesterday, you saw a celebration of the 20th anniversary of the launch of the Hubble space telescope.
"Just doing a little rough sketch where things are going to go, and hope that the engineers at NASA do not check this for authenticity,” said Micheal Lopez, who was creating the Hubble Doodle the day we visited Google.
"Space will be back here, and the Earth horizon behind it, so you can get the sense that it's doing its orbits around the Earth,” he said. “One quick, little brushstroke. I think that's good."
Lopez leads the team of Google Doodle designers, four artists whose work is seen not only on Google's American website, but on Google home pages for more than 100 countries around the world.
Ryan Germick was creating the Doodle that appeared on Google's British website Friday - St. George's Day, honoring the dragon-slaying knight.
"St. George's day is important,” Germich said. "My father's name is George. So, you know, that's a little special personal interest to me."
Jennifer Hom is working on a Doodle for Google's Czech website.
"It's the birthday of Komensky; he was an educator in the Czech Republic," she said.
Susie Sahim is creating a doodle for the Google home page in Spain for the birthday of a renowned naturalist.
"His name is Felix Rodriguez de la Fuente,” Sahim said. “So the sun is creating the O. And the two wolves together make the G. And his body much more vertical, making the L."
The doodlers take their art seriously. Jennifer Hom said Rembrandt, Caravaggio and Van Dyke were good reference points for the style used in their Doodles.
From emulating the masters to imitating cartoons, Sahim says the Doodlers do it all.
"We could do acrylic, we could do, you know, oil pastel," Sahim said. "There's all kinds of possibilities out there."
"You can make this logo look like it's been made out of anything," Blackstone said.
"Yeah, pretty much," said Sahim.
During this year's winter Olympics, Google Doodles recognized a different event every day.
And when “Sesame Street” turned 40 last year, Muppets moved onto Google home pages around the world.
The doodlers come up with ideas in casual pitch meetings, largely based on the calendar and what’s going on in the world, looking for ideas they call “Googley” - art, science and technology, steering clear of anything too commercial or political.
Google Doodles have become an online art extravaganza, but the first doodle, put up by company founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin in 1998, was much simpler - a tribute to the Burning Man Festival.
Dennis Hwang, one of the earliest Google workers, was a student intern when Page and Brin noticed he could draw and suggested he dress up the logo.
"For the first six or seven years, I was pretty much the only one creating these designs," he said.
"My first one was for Bastille Day, I think in year 2000,” he said. “And I remember nervously putting up what I think of now as a very, very rudimentary, simple design."
In those days Doodles appeared only occasionally. Hwang was doing something that in many companies would be forbidden: Altering the logo.
"The first rule is leave the company identity alone, keep it consistent,” Hwang said. “You look at Coca-Cola or McDonalds or Starbucks, anywhere in the world, and the symbols you see are very consistent."
But Hwang kept playing with Google's logo, even as it was becoming more famous.
“Larry and Sergey like to challenge conventional wisdom,” Hwang said, “so they asked the question: ‘Hey, why not have fun with our company branding and logo?’”
Of course, sometimes the logo doesn't seem to "say" Google at all, like one marking the invention of the bar code, and only those who know Braille could read what the Doodle marking Louis Braille's birthday said.
"I think one of the things we try to do is make sure that you can actually see the Google logo, every single time,” said Germick. “I know there's been some concepts that I've done where, you know, these guys are scratching their heads, going, ‘Where does it say Google?’”
In the annual competition "Doodle 4 Google," kids are invited to submit their own Doodles, with $15,000 awarded for a college scholarship fund.
"But I think the biggest thing of all, that's really exciting for the kids, is the fact that they get their Doodle put on our home page for hundreds of millions of people to see,” said Lopez.
One Doodler laughed, “I saw some ‘Doodle 4 Google’ winners, and I was, like, Wow, I need to step up my game!”
The Doodles seem to be getting more ambitious all the time, using animation for Sir Isaac Newton's birthday this year. And for Halloween, Ryan Germick created a Doodle that was a trick... as well as a treat.
"If you clicked on it, then the whole logo became candy,” he said. “And then, if you clicked on it again, there was just a big, huge pile of candy. You couldn't see the logo anymore."
"And if you clicked on it another time, it was just wrappers, you know?"
The Doodles make opening Google’s homepage a little like unwrapping candy... there may be a surprise inside.
This year’s winning “Doodle 4 Google” design will be featured on Google’s homepage on May 27, 2010.
[via CBS News]
Hubble Space Telescope's 20th Anniversary
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| Homepage: http://earth.google.com/hubble20th/ Source: http://www.google.com/logos/hubble10-hp.png |
National Sovereignty and Children's Day
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| Source: http://www.google.com/logos/childrens_day_turkey10-hp.gif |
In addition to holding many domestic celebratory events such as stadium performances, Turkey also houses Children's Day Festival, where groups of children from other countries are invited to participate in the festivities while staying at Turkish families' homes.
The Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM, Turkish: Türkiye Büyük Millet Meclisi), usually referred to simply as the Meclis ("parliament"), is the unicameral Turkish legislature. It is the sole body given the legislative prerogatives by the Turkish Constitution. It was founded in Ankara on 23 April 1920 in the midst of the Turkish War of Independence. The parliament was fundamental in the efforts of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk to found a new state out of the remnants of the Ottoman Empire in the aftermath of the World War I. [Read more on Wikipedia]
Feria de abril
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| Source: http://www.google.com/logos/feriadeabril10-hp.gif |
The fair officially begins at midnight on Monday, and runs six days, ending on the following Sunday. During past fairs, however, many activities have begun on the Saturday prior to the official opening. Each day the fiesta begins with the parade of carriages and riders, at midday, carrying Seville's leading citizens which make their way to the bullring, La Real Maestranza, where the bullfighters and breeders meet.
For the duration of the fair, the fairgrounds and a vast area on the far bank of the Guadalquivir River are totally covered in rows of casetas (individual decorated marquee tents which are temporarily built on the fairground). Some of these casetas belong to the prominent families of Seville, some to groups of friends, clubs, trade associations or political parties. From around nine at night until six or seven the following morning, at first in the streets and later only within each caseta, you will find crowds partying and dancing "Sevillanas", drinking Jerez sherry, or manzanilla wine, and eating tapas. [Read more on Wikipedia]
Josif Pancic's Birthday
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| Source: http://www.google.com/logos/pancic2010-hp.gif |
Karen Blixen's Birthday
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| Source: http://www.google.com/logos/karenblixen10-hp.jpg |
Blixen is best known for Out of Africa, her account of living in Kenya, and one of her stories, Babette's Feast, both of which have been adapted into highly acclaimed, Academy Award-winning motion pictures. Prior to the release of the first film, she was noted for her Seven Gothic Tales, for which she is also known in Denmark.
Peter Englund, permanent secretary of the Swedish Academy, described as "a mistake" that Blixen was not awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature during the 1930s. In Denmark, her place among 20th century Danes is second in prominence only to physicist Niels Bohr. [Read more on Wikipedia]
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| Karen Blixen in her later years |
Vlasta Burian's Birthday
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| Source: http://www.google.com/logos/burian10-hp.gif |
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| Vlasta Burian (1937) |
Hans Christian Andersen's 205th Birthday
Hans Christian Andersen's Thumbelina has taken over Google's logo!
Google's multi-colored logo has been replaced by a series of Google Doodles that present scenes from Hans Christian Andersen's children's story Thumbelina.
Today marks the writer's 205th birthday. His other famous stories include The Snow Queen, The Little Mermaid, The Emperor's New Clothes, and The Princess and the Pea.
Hans Christian Andersen (Danish pronunciation: [ˈhanˀs ˈkʰʁæʂd̥jan ˈɑnɐsn̩], referred to using the initials H. C. Andersen in Denmark; April 2, 1805 – August 4, 1875) was a Danish author and poet noted for his children's stories. These include "The Steadfast Tin Soldier", "The Snow Queen", "The Little Mermaid", "Thumbelina", "The Little Match Girl", and "The Ugly Duckling".
During his lifetime he was acclaimed for having delighted children worldwide, and was feted by royalty. His poetry and stories have been translated into more than 150 languages. They have inspired motion pictures, plays, ballets, and animated films. [Read more on Wikipedia]
Google's multi-colored logo has been replaced by a series of Google Doodles that present scenes from Hans Christian Andersen's children's story Thumbelina.
Today marks the writer's 205th birthday. His other famous stories include The Snow Queen, The Little Mermaid, The Emperor's New Clothes, and The Princess and the Pea.
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| Source: http://www.google.com/logos/andersen10-1-hp.gif |
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| Source: http://www.google.com/logos/andersen10-2-hp.gif |
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| Source: http://www.google.com/logos/andersen10-3-hp.gif |
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| Source: http://www.google.com/logos/andersen10-4-hp.gif |
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| Source: http://www.google.com/logos/andersen10-5-hp.gif |
During his lifetime he was acclaimed for having delighted children worldwide, and was feted by royalty. His poetry and stories have been translated into more than 150 languages. They have inspired motion pictures, plays, ballets, and animated films. [Read more on Wikipedia]
April Fools!
Google and Topeka, Kansas, Switch Places
In early March, the city of Topeka, Kansas, temporarily changed its name to Google in an attempt to capture a spot in Google's new broadband/fiber-optics project. Then, on April 1 (April Fools' Day), Google jokingly announced that it would be changing its name to Topeka, to "honor that moving gesture" and changed its home page to say Topeka in place of the Google logo.
ReaderAdvantage Program
Google announced a reward program for Google Reader, known as ReaderAdvantage™, in which they would assign points to users depending on the number of items read on Google Reader. The rewards were different badges, which, on visiting the ReaderAdvantage™ page and clicking on the enroll button, shows this page.
In early March, the city of Topeka, Kansas, temporarily changed its name to Google in an attempt to capture a spot in Google's new broadband/fiber-optics project. Then, on April 1 (April Fools' Day), Google jokingly announced that it would be changing its name to Topeka, to "honor that moving gesture" and changed its home page to say Topeka in place of the Google logo. |
| Source: http://www.google.com/logos/topeka-hp.gif |
Google announced a reward program for Google Reader, known as ReaderAdvantage™, in which they would assign points to users depending on the number of items read on Google Reader. The rewards were different badges, which, on visiting the ReaderAdvantage™ page and clicking on the enroll button, shows this page.
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| Novice - Source: https://www.google.com/images/reader-advantage-standard.jpg |
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| Gold - Source: https://www.google.com/images/reader-advantage-gold.jpg |
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| Platinum - Source: https://www.google.com/images/reader-advantage-platinum.jpg |
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| Totally Sweet - Source: https://www.google.com/images/reader-advantage-sweet.jpg |
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