Deconstructing “Folded” Logos

Can you recognize an iconic corporate logo when it’s broken down into its most basic shape? Plus a new Inconspicuous News Roundup.

Editor’s Note: This post includes several short video clips that are important for getting the point across, so I strongly urge you to read the web version of the post, not the emailed version. Enjoy! — Paul

The other day I took a sheet of white paper and cut out the shape you see in the photo above. That shape happens to be the primary component of a mainstream corporate logo that you are almost certainly familiar with. Can you recognize it?

If you’re stumped, how about if I do this:

Do you recognize it yet? Here’s the answer:

7-Eleven! Ever since I was a kid, my brain has instinctively wanted to “unfold” the numeral in that logo and see the resulting shape. But until I started working on this post, I had never gone to the trouble of actually doing it in real life. Now that I’ve finally done it, there’s something very satisfying about it. Look again at the original unfolded shape — it looks nothing like a 7, but the 7 is lurking within it:

I can’t fully explain why, but whenever I see a folded shape, like the 7 in that logo, there’s something that makes me want to see it unfolded. I think it has something to do with problem-solving, visualization, and the urge to understand how things are made, all of which hold strong appeal for me.

Here’s another familiar logo in its unfolded form — see if you can identify it: