--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If you look at the Olympic graphics for…" description: "\"If you look at the Olympic graphics for Mexico or Los Angeles, those programs don't look contemporary by today's eyes but they really look like they ar..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a8/michael-bierut-10873_contemporary_if-you-look-at-the-olympic-graphics-for_615066.png" --- # If you look at the Olympic graphics for Mexico or Los… ![“If you look at the Olympic graphics for Mexico or Los Angeles, those programs don't look contemporary by today's eyes but they really look like they are of their place and time.” quote by Michael Bierut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a8/michael-bierut-10873_contemporary_if-you-look-at-the-olympic-graphics-for_615066.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a8/michael-bierut-10873_contemporary_if-you-look-at-the-olympic-graphics-for_615066.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a8/michael-bierut-10873_contemporary_if-you-look-at-the-olympic-graphics-for_615066.png) > “If you look at the Olympic graphics for Mexico or Los Angeles, those programs don't look contemporary by today's eyes but they really look like they are of their place and time.” [Michael Bierut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bierut/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Design from a specific era can appear dated now, yet it authentically reflects its cultural context, making it valuable as a historical artifact. **In simple terms:** Design shows its time, even if it feels outdated. Key Takeaway Appreciate design’s cultural roots. Themes design history culture Mood analytical nostalgic Type historical educational When to use this quote - branding - graphic design - museum curation - educational curricula Key Concepts aesthetics temporal context Questions to Reflect On - How does context change your perception of design? - What can contemporary designers learn from past styles? A Different Perspective Modern audiences may misinterpret intent; nostalgia can bias judgment. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Los angeles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/los-angeles/) [Mexico](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mexico/) [Olympics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/olympics/) [Place and time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/place-and-time/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Today](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/today/) ## Related quotes > [When you look back from your Olympic experience, you never want to question whether you could have done more. 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There are just as horrible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-wittgenstein/nowadays-it-is-the-fashion-to-emphasize-the-horrors-of-the-last-war-i/) [Ludwig Wittgenstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-wittgenstein/) > [Part of the mystery of any given photograph is the fact that it was taken at a certain time and in a certain place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/errol-morris/part-of-the-mystery-of-any-given-photograph-is-the-fact-that-it-was/) [Errol Morris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/errol-morris/) > [The line is a whole, an identity, for a particular place and time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-sandback/the-line-is-a-whole-an-identity-for-a-particular-place-and-time/) Fred Sandback > [There are 7 billion people on the planet. Pretty much everyone is doing sex. It's not like you need to order the "baby-starter kit"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-reynolds/there-are-7-billion-people-on-the-planet-pretty-much-everyone-is/) [Ryan Reynolds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-reynolds/) > [ \[T\]he individual in whom the will for the light is strong and clear finds his heart inextricably bound up with the struggle of the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olaf-stapledon/t-he-individual-in-whom-the-will-for-the-light-is-strong-and-clear/) [Olaf Stapledon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olaf-stapledon/) > [When you get into a tight place, and everything goes against you till it seems as if you could n't hold on a minute…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-beecher-stowe/when-you-get-into-a-tight-place-and-everything-goes-against-you-till-2/) [Harriet Beecher Stowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-beecher-stowe/) > [My mother was an avid readerShe loved books about romance. Books that took place in faraway places and times. Stories with costumes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adriana-trigiani/my-mother-was-an-avid-readershe-loved-books-about-romance-books-that/) [Adriana Trigiani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adriana-trigiani/) > [When real substantive change happens it's the people who watch your show, they're the ones that make it happen. It's people whose names are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-morello/when-real-substantive-change-happens-it-s-the-people-who-watch-your/) [Tom Morello](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-morello/) > [If you find examples of humanism which are anti-religious, or at least in opposition to the religious faith of the place and time, then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/if-you-find-examples-of-humanism-which-are-anti-religious-or-at-least/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [For liberalism is a delicate thing. It encompasses so much -- constitutional government, democratic elections, freedom of worship, civil rights, free trade -- that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-shorto/for-liberalism-is-a-delicate-thing-it-encompasses-so-much/) [Russell Shorto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-shorto/) > [Both place and time were changed, and I dwelt nearer to those parts of the universe and to those eras in history which had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/both-place-and-time-were-changed-and-i-dwelt-nearer-to-those-parts-of/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [I have a very acute sense of place and time, so all of my stories are rooted in a place and a time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-allende/i-have-a-very-acute-sense-of-place-and-time-so-all-of-my-stories-are/) [Isabel Allende](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-allende/) > [ I think it is worse \[in 2015\] for a mid-list author such as myself. You either have to sell like Stephen King or go… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-p-kinsella/i-think-it-is-worse-in-2015-for-a-mid-list-author-such-as-myself-you/) [W. P. Kinsella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-p-kinsella/) ## More by Michael Bierut > [I think once the artistic world of the type designer merged with the scientific world of the computer programmer, you began to see this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bierut/i-think-once-the-artistic-world-of-the-type-designer-merged-with-the/) [Michael Bierut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bierut/) > [If you do good work for good clients, it will lead to other good work for other good clients. If you do bad work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bierut/if-you-do-good-work-for-good-clients-it-will-lead-to-other-good-work/) [Michael Bierut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bierut/) > [A lot of times, you design a logo to be timeless, but with something like the Olympics, timelessness is maybe not something you should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bierut/a-lot-of-times-you-design-a-logo-to-be-timeless-but-with-something/) [Michael Bierut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bierut/) > [I actually think it almost works the other way sometimes: making a college textbook, say, look really "user friendly" tends to also make it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bierut/i-actually-think-it-almost-works-the-other-way-sometimes-making-a/) [Michael Bierut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bierut/) > [I'm not sure about my design work every time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bierut/i-m-not-sure-about-my-design-work-every-time/) [Michael Bierut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bierut/) > [It's hard to predict what will happen as reading on screen becomes more of a universal norm, and when the formats dictated by social…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bierut/it-s-hard-to-predict-what-will-happen-as-reading-on-screen-becomes/) [Michael Bierut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bierut/) > [It was stone carvers in ancient Rome, scribes in the Middle Ages, all the way through Gutenberg to the present day. That's a pretty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bierut/it-was-stone-carvers-in-ancient-rome-scribes-in-the-middle-ages-all/) [Michael Bierut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bierut/) > [Australia is one of the few places that I can think of where the cities, at least those I've been to, seem to have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bierut/australia-is-one-of-the-few-places-that-i-can-think-of-where-the/) [Michael Bierut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bierut/) > [Most people have no idea how much goes into designing a typeface. Twenty-six letters in the alphabet, usually with two versions of each, upper…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bierut/most-people-have-no-idea-how-much-goes-into-designing-a-typeface/) [Michael Bierut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bierut/) > [The truth about logos is that they are not that hard to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bierut/the-truth-about-logos-is-that-they-are-not-that-hard-to-do/) [Michael Bierut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bierut/) > [I'm always conscious of the context, the history, the specific environment of anything that I design and what it is going to be operating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bierut/i-m-always-conscious-of-the-context-the-history-the-specific/) [Michael Bierut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bierut/) > [For instance, I assume those "carrots" we have on our keyboards were there originally to express "greater than" and "less than." Then they were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bierut/for-instance-i-assume-those-carrots-we-have-on-our-keyboards-were/) [Michael Bierut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bierut/) > [I wanted to be a graphic designer from the time I was 15, without ever having actually met one. I lived in the mid-west,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bierut/i-wanted-to-be-a-graphic-designer-from-the-time-i-was-15-without-ever/) [Michael Bierut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bierut/) > [Compared with now when almost everyone knows what graphic design is and has some sort of access to the tools to make it, back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bierut/compared-with-now-when-almost-everyone-knows-what-graphic-design-is/) [Michael Bierut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bierut/) > [The scientists at CERN were actually surprised that people commented on this. Reportedly Fabiola Gianotti, the coordinator of the CERN program to find the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bierut/the-scientists-at-cern-were-actually-surprised-that-people-commented/) [Michael Bierut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bierut/) [Explore all 63 Michael Bierut quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bierut/) ## More Contemporary quotes > [In the future, I would like to do more films with contemporary themes. 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What kind of example is that? A mindless twit who can't even remember where she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-chase/and-for-god-s-sake-don-t-let-her-watch-cinderella-what-kind-of/) [Emma Chase](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-chase/) > [On the one hand, we had great filmic spectacles that brought in big audiences, adults as well as primary and secondary school students. On…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrzej-wajda/on-the-one-hand-we-had-great-filmic-spectacles-that-brought-in-big/) [Andrzej Wajda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrzej-wajda/) > [“No." I pulled away just enough to lock my eyes with his. His crooked smile sent shivers down my spine. His eyes were a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-witter/no-i-pulled-away-just-enough-to-lock-my-eyes-with-his-his-crooked/) [Stephanie Witter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephanie-witter/) > [One of those blocks (that prevent the 'Middle East from entering the mainstream of modernity') is the orthodox tenet that the Koran and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-beichman/one-of-those-blocks-that-prevent-the-middle-east-from-entering-the/) [Arnold Beichman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-beichman/) > [The boundaries between contemporary art and cinema are so rigid. It's unbelievable. The film critics don't know my artwork and the art world doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-varda/the-boundaries-between-contemporary-art-and-cinema-are-so-rigid-it-s/) [Agnes Varda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-varda/) > [I'm educating myself more about world poetry. I know a lot about contemporary American poetry, so I felt I needed to learn more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allison-joseph/i-m-educating-myself-more-about-world-poetry-i-know-a-lot-about/) [Allison Joseph](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allison-joseph/) > [We have created indoor installations inside museums, like the Wrapped Floor at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago in 1968, and not monumental…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christo/we-have-created-indoor-installations-inside-museums-like-the-wrapped/) [Christo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christo/) > [Going back to the noir fiction of the 30s, 40s and 50s. It's very contemporary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-goldblum/going-back-to-the-noir-fiction-of-the-30s-40s-and-50s-it-s-very/) [Jeff Goldblum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-goldblum/) > [Most of my contemporary grant-getters are now doing something other than painting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-genn/most-of-my-contemporary-grant-getters-are-now-doing-something-other/) [Robert Genn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-genn/) > [“The contemporary world has turned its back on the attempt and even on the desire to live reasonably.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-santayana/the-contemporary-world-has-turned-its-back-on-the-attempt-and-even-on/) [George Santayana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-santayana/) > [No, it's interesting to remake a film for the contemporary audience today. I think it's a good idea; it needs to respect the original…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dario-argento/no-it-s-interesting-to-remake-a-film-for-the-contemporary-audience/) [Dario Argento](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dario-argento/) Browse all 1,586 Contemporary quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If you look at the Olympic graphics for Mexico or Los Angeles, those programs don't look contemporary by today's eyes but they really look like they are of their place and time.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Michael Bierut" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bierut/if-you-look-at-the-olympic-graphics-for-mexico-or-los-angeles-those/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Contemporary" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bierut/if-you-look-at-the-olympic-graphics-for-mexico-or-los-angeles-those/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a8/michael-bierut-10873_contemporary_if-you-look-at-the-olympic-graphics-for_615066.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a8/michael-bierut-10873_contemporary_if-you-look-at-the-olympic-graphics-for_615066.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a8/michael-bierut-10873_contemporary_if-you-look-at-the-olympic-graphics-for_615066.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If you look at the Olympic graphics for Mexico or Los Angeles, those programs don't look contemporary by…” — Michael Bierut", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Michael Bierut", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bierut/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If you look at the Olympic...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bierut/if-you-look-at-the-olympic-graphics-for-mexico-or-los-angeles-those/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bierut/if-you-look-at-the-olympic-graphics-for-mexico-or-los-angeles-those/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```