Altria Logo^307When the Philip Morris
Company changed its
corporate name in January
2003 to Altria, it introduced
an abstract logo that is
diametrically different from
its former heraldic coat
of arms, still used on its
cigarette packages. Since big business is so reverent toward logos—
especially venerated ones—to reinvent an entirely new corporate identity
raises a flag, which is exactly what Philip Morris has done in its battle
against negative public perception.
In fact, the new logo, a colorful mosaic grid conceived by Landor
Associates, New York, looks incredibly similar to the 1994 “Earth Flag” by a
Danish designer, Torben Skov, for a conference in Ostend, Belgium. It is
also reminiscent, in concept though not form, to the post-apartheid South
African flag, with clashing colors symbolizing the nation’s diverse tribes.
Likewise, Altria’s luminescent grid represents Philip Morris’s brand
diversity, from its cigarette line (Marlboro, Virginia Slims, Benson &
Hedges, Parliament, Chesterfield, English Ovals, L&M, and dozens of
others in the U.S. and Europe) to Miller Brewing Co. and Kraft Foods
(Cheez Whiz, Kool-Aid, Maxwell House, Oscar Mayer, Sanka, Tang,
Velveeta, and more).
The logo is inspired (if one squints) by a display of varied packages.
Nonetheless, compared to the imperial lions framing Philip Morris’s original
monogram, this contempo symbol is fairly generic and applicable to scores
of different companies, which vividly shows how graphic abstraction can
make even the most simplistic concept into a mark of authority.
And yet, Altria’s logo is actually more similar to one of those
vibrating pixelated distortions used on Court TV or 60 Minutesto
obliterate a witness’s or whistle-blower’s face than it is to a national flag. It
is therefore designed more to camouflage than to illuminate, which is not
surprising, since one of the jobs of CI (corporate identity) is to hide or
remove stains from a questionable corporate image.
Ever since smoking was officially deemed hazardous and addictive
by the Surgeon General, Philip Morris’s tobacco divisions have cast long