https://archive.triblive.com/aande/more-a-and-e/world-chess-championships-logos-cause-controversy/
World Chess Championships logos cause controversy
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Paul Morigi/Invision/AP
In this June 18, 2014, photo, World Chess Champion Garry Kasparov, right, and Rex Sinquefield, founder and president of the Board of Directors of the St. Louis Chess Club, kick off the first-ever Congressional Chess Match at the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington. Kasparov, who has been retired from competitive play since 2005, is returning to competition on Aug. 14-19, 2017, at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of St. Louis.
Logos unveiled for the 2018 World Chess Championship are drawing plenty of reaction online, but little to do with the chess.
The logos feature two intertwined figures, with arms and legs in various positions, kind of like a game of Twister gone wild, or worse.
The Telegraph described the logo as “pawnographic.”
“The chosen image shows two chequered bodies entwined around a chess board. It is, World Chess say, unashamedly sexual. Perhaps, one could even say, pawnographic,” the newspaper wrote.
“People are openly laughing at it,” said chess expert David Kramaley, who runs learning site Chessable , is quoted in the story. “But, joking aside, I’ve got to say it has grown on me.”
The World Chess organization itself posted on its site that the logos as “controversial and trendy, just like the host city.”
The host city is London and the tournament is set for November 11-30 of next year.
The match will feature the current World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen defending his title against a challenger who will be determined during the a tournament in March.
The designers – Shuka Design – also designed the 2016 logos, which were also black-n-white but not as NSFW.
Some took to Twitter to comment on the logos.
Susan Polgar, a chess competitor and coach.
I strongly urge @theworldchess @FIDE_chess to scrap these logos and come up with something else which is classy, attractive, clever, marketable and most importantly something the entire global chess community can be proud of! @EuropeEchecs @chessdom @chesscom @chess24com pic.twitter.com/UESY7RuEKp
— Susan Polgar (@SusanPolgar) December 20, 2017
David Smerdon, Australian chess grandmaster. Official logos released for the 2018 World Chess Championships. No, this is not a joke. #ChessIsSexy #YouHadOneJob https://t.co/OuOaCdMqhF pic.twitter.com/vTXH5Oc2Jd
— David Smerdon (@dsmerdon) December 19, 2017
Bryan Armen Graham, of the Guardian. The branding for the 2018 World Chess Championship in London was unveiled today and it sure is something. pic.twitter.com/Nar2TU87dR
— Bryan Armen Graham (@BryanAGraham) December 19, 2017
Frank Carnevale is a Tribune-Review Digital Producer. Reach him at fcarnevale@tribweb.com or via Twitter @frnkstar.