TYPOGRAPHY

12 OCTOBER 2026

5 MIN READ

WHY YOUR LOGO SHOULD SURVIVE A FAX MACHINE

BY INÊS ROCHA

Every identity we make goes through the same rough test. Shrink it to sixteen pixels. Print it in one colour. Fax it, or the modern version of a fax, a screenshot of a screenshot sent over a bad connection.

If the mark is still readable, it is ready. If it falls apart, the detail was decoration, not design.

THREE TESTS WE RUN

The favicon test: drop the mark into a browser tab next to ten others. Can you find it in a second?

The one-colour test: print it black on cheap paper. Does it still feel like the brand?

The squint test: step back and squint. If the shape disappears, so will the brand.

“THE DETAIL WAS DECORATION, NOT DESIGN.”

Cut what does not survive, and try again. The best marks we have made all got simpler before they got better.

INDEPENDENT BRAND AND DESIGN STUDIO

BUILDING IDENTITIES THAT LAST

MARLOW VANE

MARLOW VANE

MARLOW VANE

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STUDIO

Rua das Flores 28

Lisbon, Portugal

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