Instagram has announced in a blog post that it is “bringing new energy and purpose to our colors, typeface, logo and other brand elements with a refreshed visual identity.” The image-oriented social media platform further explained that “our new system is designed to embrace continued evolution to help us create more immersive and inclusive experiences for our community.”
Put in slightly less ‘marketing-speak’ terms, the visual refresh effectively comes in the three parts of (a) a new font for the app with the name Instagram Sans; (b) a new layout and design system; and (c) a new logo incorporating moving gradient colors.
Not all of the changes have obvious practical application for users; we aren’t entirely sure, for example, how users and creators are supposed to use the moving gradient logo. Still, Instagram seems enthusiastic enough about it, exclaiming that the gradient was “reimagined using an innovative 3D modelling process”, while vibrant colors were drawn upon to “make it feel illuminated and alive, and to signal moments of discovery.”
The new Instagram Sans typeface, meanwhile, has a more obvious practical use; we like how global accessibility was such a priority in its creation, Instagram explaining that it “partnered with language experts around the world to adapt the typeface to global scripts including Arabic, Thai and Japanese.”
Finally, what about the new layout and design system? Instagram has said that it is “content-forward and celebrates creativity, simplicity and self-expression.” We’re further told in the blog post that “the new marketing layouts for Instagram showcase full-screen imagery, reference the in-app experience and celebrate the creativity we see from our community every day.”
It’s all very interesting, although not necessarily for everyone, with the iMore website’s Oliver Haslam being one observer to question Instagram’s priorities, given the continued absence of an iPad app. In his words, “does an icon getting a refresh really happen if there are no iPad users to see it?”