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The occasional artistic "doodles" that replace the
Google logo are seen by hundreds of millions of people. But who are the
brains behind them?
A playable Les Paul guitar, a Pac-Man game and a keyboard in celebration
of Robert Moog. These are just some of the many doodles that Google has
displayed on its home page.
What started in 1998 as a stick figure drawing behind the letter "o" to
show the team were out of the office, has now developed into intricate
designs, games and artistic representations of famous figures and
events.
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There have been more than 1,000 doodles. They depict both the famous and
the less well-known, they feature anniversaries and some more
idiosyncratic tributes, and are increasingly becoming interactive and
shareable.
How else would hundreds of millions of people been reminded of Amelia
Earhart's 115th birthday or that Gideon Sundback was the inventor of the
zip? On his 132nd birthday, Google placed a giant zip down their home
page.
On every day of the 2012 Olympics, a new sport-themed doodle has lived
above the search bar. One day it was synchronised swimming, another day
users could practise shooting hoops against the clock.
With every new doodle comes a raft of online news articles. The choice
of doodle is always a noteworthy event, not least among bored office
workers for whom the sketches offer a welcome splash of variety into
their daily routine.
Whether one treats the doodles as art or design, they are among the most
viewed examples in the world.
Despite the attention, there is little focus on the creators.
Watch the Charlie Chaplin doodle and you will get a glimpse, although in
costume, of the team who call themselves "doodlers".
They are seen by hundreds of millions of people. Some are put together
in a few hours - others, like the Freddie Mercury tribute, take several
months to complete. All are created by the handful of "doodlers" who sit
in a small office in California.
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The team's "creative lead", Ryan Germick, says he doesn't dwell on the
idea of his work being viewed by such a mindboggling number of people.
"Human brains are not built to understand how hundreds of millions of
people interpret something. For me it's more about seeing if I can make
my colleagues laugh, or learn a new technique. Then I've done my job.
We just make sure we are representing art and technology in the best
possible way."
He says they don't categorise themselves as artists or designers.
"We are the line between entertainment, arts, technology and graphic
design. Those lines are very blurry."
The team, he says, are trying to deliver a maximum amount of joy with
the limited resources available. Once designer Dennis Hwang was
responsible for most of the doodles, but he has since moved on to other
things. Individuals on the team don't usually take credit for their
work.
"It's not about us as individuals, it's about Google as a culture," says
Germick.
Most of those working on the technical side of the doodles do so under
Google's 20% principle - where their day job is something else but a
fifth of their time can be dedicated to a project.
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Kris Hom, a technical engineer who used to be one of the 20% and only
recently joined the doodle team full time, says the pinnacle for him was
when his mother shared her score from one of the Olympic playable
doodles.
The doodles are a way to "humanise the home page", says Hom.
The decision on what's featured, says Germick, is a "fairly democratic
process" and is more about the element of surprise and finding a memory
or person that's "a good fit", than celebrating common anniversaries. If
they had to wait for Earhart's 150th birthday, for example, it would be
a very long wait.
Doodle celebrating English archaeologist Howard Carter's 138th birthday
Suggestions from the public as well as ideas from Google offices in
other countries play a big role. A lot of work is done using digital
drawing tools, but sometimes a doodle originates as a physical painting.
Doodler Jennifer Hom, painted the Gustav Klimt birthday doodle using
faux gold leaf and oil paint, on canvas.
"I wanted to pay homage to Klimt with his most famous painting, The
Kiss. I hope that our humble doodle does his brilliant legacy some
justice," she wrote.
"The point about art is that it is free of function," says Deyan Sudjic,
director of London's Design Museum. "Design - which used to be called
commercial art - is tied down by a functional obligation.
"Andy Warhol began as an illustrator and made himself into an artist.
The drawings he did as an illustrator sell for a lot, but not as much as
his art does."
But graphic designer Si Scott - whose work includes corporate clients
but also features in exhibitions - believes that these days design,
including the doodles, is the new modern art.
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Jasmine Montgomery, chief executive of marketing company Seven Brands,
disagrees.
"Once you are being paid to harness your creativity to branding or
advertising, it's not strictly art because it's serving a commercial
master and not a purely creative master.
"The doodles are part of a well-designed customer experience. They are
the equivalent of a hotel designing a nice lobby or a product coming in
beautiful packaging," she argues.
It's hard to get away from the underlying corporate purpose of the
doodles. They help Google play with its image - an image that
occasionally comes under attack either because of privacy or accusations
of tax avoidance.
The quirkier facts behind the doodles create "water cooler
conversation", says branding consultant Lisa Downey Merriam, of Merriam
Associates.
"The doodles are fun charming, playful and engaging, most of all they
are relevant and sometimes even surprising - all this portrays some of
the Google's personality."
And as long as the company retains its dominance, those sketches and
scribbles - whether you see them as art, design, entertainment or
hard-headed branding - will be a ubiquitous part of everyday browsing.
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