The Dot Collection
Subverting the Siren
The Starbucks Siren, which we affectionately call the “dot,” is one of the most recognizable logos around. This holiday season we gave our designers free reign to play and stretch the idea of our iconic logo. We ended up creating 100 variations! Here are a few of our favorites:
Designer: Esther Asuncion
“I did a few explorations of people with balloons — floating and jumping in the air. I drew many versions of kids, women and silhouettes. Then I sketched my own son Flynn, who is always overjoyed to have a balloon. In this design, the dot floats away, bringing the boy to the center of the piece. Silver accents on his scarf, T-shirt and shoes add a bit of contrast to the penciled lines, which capture Flynn’s energy and zest for life.”
Designer: Trista Sydloski-Tesch
“I began by drawing different types of eyes: cheeky, sleepy, silly, wide-eyed, mysterious. I worked quickly with my marker so as not to over think it and stay loose since pairs of eyes are rarely perfectly symmetrical. The dot didn’t keep the same proportion as our usual logo. Instead it’s represented by the iris of one eye, colored in our classic Starbucks green.”
Designer: Ruth Arellano
“The red cup traveler was inspired by the starburst design and the ‘Let there be bright’ sentiment at the heart of our holiday promotion. Our iconic Siren logo captures the traditional feel of the holidays with a modern twist on the red paper cups that represent Starbucks during the season. Brushstrokes are whimsical and expressive and introduce an organic and hand-drawn element that ignites the spirit of the season.”
Designer: Trista Sydloski-Tesch
“For this piece, I was inspired by our amazing collection of Starbucks photography. The dot is subtle in this retro photo, artfully placed to highlight the original logo that still hangs in our Pike Place store window. Polished stainless steel, coated in a translucent sepia tone with a matte positive image, mimics the effect of a vintage 1800s tintype.
Designer: Nicole Gutierrez Harter
“The hot air balloon design was inspired by our mysterious Siren and Puget Sound in the Pacific Northwest. The dot is the balloon, covered in a scale design, using gold in place of black pen strokes to add dimension. The reference to the Siren is continued on the back of the tumbler — if you look closely, you will see her tail peeking out of the water.”
Designer: Trista Sydloski-Tesch
“Using a technique I learned in design school, I started the image very small and enlarged it to expose all the nuances of hand work. Working quickly and small allows a lot of expression to come through. The smiling Siren on the white cup is a direct expression of the Starbucks logo. The scales on her cheeks gleam with a golden shine, like shimmering freckles.”
Designer: Fred Carriedo
“The design was inspired by expressive spray-paint street art. I replicated an effortless and continuous spray of graffiti by making several spray dots and letting the paint run at random. Several sprays were photographed at a large scale before we chose one for the final piece.”
Designer: Fred Carriedo
“This design was inspired by the expressive street art found in cities across the country. By knocking out the art, the dot is represented through negative space. It took several attempts to achieve the effortless and continuous controlled spray. The best one was photographed and incorporated into the finished tumbler.”
Designer: Pamela Farrington
“My grandmother was the inspiration for this piece. Once when I was working on a challenging art school assignment with complex colors and patterns, she told me to look at insect and flower books. She said nature puts color and pattern together perfectly. This design also draws on current fashion trends that combine richly layered patterns with an unexpected twist — in this case the dot over the beetle.”
Designer: Pamela Farrington
“My father gave me a Russian nesting doll set when I was a child. My sister and I would play with our dolls for hours and they’re still in my studio today. When I created this piece I thought the face of the doll would be a sweet way to represent the dot in the collection. I added a smaller sleeping doll to the back of the mug for decaf coffee fans.”
Designer: Pamela Farrington
“I’ve been passionate about riding bikes my whole life and I couldn’t resist working my love of bikes into a design for the dot collection. While I don’t commute on a penny-farthing bike, it was the obvious choice to let the high wheel represent the dot. The design wouldn’t be complete without a bird and a cup holder for coffee.”
Designer: Marisa Crane
“This design was inspired by precious gems: diamonds, rubies and pearls. Put together, the jewels form the dot, the centerpiece for a festive statement necklace. To enhance the sparkle even more, we added real gold accents in production.”
Designer: Marisa Crane
“This is an artist interpretation of our beloved Siren, who represents the dot in this design. I painted her in watercolors inspired by the sea. The final piece is finished with real gold accents that help bring her to life.”
Designer: Marisa Crane
“This design was inspired by typography and design exercises. To start, I cut up our Starbucks wordmark into small squares and then pieced it back together, creating the unique pattern you see on the cup. The entire piece encapsulates the meaning behind the single dot.”
Designer: Rachel Spence
“Taking a traditional subject like flowers and rendering them in an abstract way really helped emphasize the form and colors in this expressive piece. The painting was done in acrylic, and by playing with the amount of water I could play with opacity and layer. The dot is incorporated as an embossed element — a hidden element of surprise.”
Designer: Rachel Spence
“The heart of this design was inspired by a photograph I found of nature at its best. When researchers drilled into a glacier and pulled out an ice sample, it revealed amazing flecks of minerals and color. By using decals, pearlized glaze and white gold foil, I created the effect of dazzling minerals suspended in ice.”
Designer: Krispijn Larrison
“This design celebrates the memory and joy of learning how to draw three-dimensional shapes with my mom when I was a kid. The simple and playful lines I used back then are still a major component of my artistic expression today. To get the raised texture, we used an interesting printing technique that involved striking the decal with several layers of ink until the artwork began to thicken and rise from the surface.”
