Exhibit ID
AFG-ID-001
Artifact Type
Original corporate identity design correspondence and logo concept presentation materials
Period
October 1997
Designer
Irene (Don W. Taylor design office, Cleveland, Ohio)
Transmission Dates
October 6–7, 1997
Archival Status
Authenticated Primary Sources — Argo Futures Group Corporate Identity Archive
Founder Review Sheet — Annotated Selection
Click to open full-screen viewer — handwritten founder selection marks visible
Historical Summary
In October 1997 — the same month Argo Futures Group, Inc. was incorporated — founder Dan Miller engaged a graphic designer to develop the firm's corporate identity. The resulting correspondence and design presentations document the complete logo selection process from initial concept exploration through finalist refinement.
The designer, working under the name Irene through the Don W. Taylor office in Cleveland, Ohio, transmitted two rounds of fax correspondence on October 6 and October 7, 1997. The first transmission presented thirteen numbered logo concepts spanning a wide range of typographic and illustrative treatments, including variations of the distinctive 'A' mark and several concepts incorporating the Argonaut figure — a classical mariner associated with the mythological ship Argo.
The second transmission, dated the following morning, accompanied a cover letter from Irene presenting three finalist concepts that Dan Miller had indicated he preferred. The letter noted that further refinements were anticipated, particularly for the Argonaut figure variant, and invited Miller to select a direction for the next round of development.
The handwritten selection marks visible on the founder's review sheet — circles indicating preferred concepts, X marks indicating rejections — constitute a direct record of the corporate identity decision-making process at the moment of the firm's founding.
Historical Significance
The AFG-ID-001 presentation is among the earliest surviving corporate records of Argo Futures Group, Inc. It documents the firm's identity formation at the precise moment of its legal establishment — the logo design process ran concurrently with the incorporation proceedings preserved in the Founding Documents collection.
The materials reveal that the firm considered a broad range of identity directions before arriving at the 'A' mark wordmark that became the recognized Argo Futures Group logo. The Argonaut figure variants — concepts 6, 7, and 13 in the first fax — show that a more illustrative, mythologically-referenced identity was seriously considered before the cleaner typographic direction was chosen.
The designer's cover letter of October 7, 1997, signed by Irene, is the only known surviving correspondence between the firm's founder and its original graphic designer. It provides direct evidence of the collaborative process through which the Argo Futures Group visual identity was developed.
Four Pages — October 1997
Curator note
These materials are reproduced solely as historical artifacts documenting the corporate identity formation of Argo Futures Group, Inc. in October 1997. All design concepts, correspondence, annotations, and selections reflect the original creation period. The handwritten marks visible on the review sheet are preserved exactly as found and represent the founder's original selection notations. These materials must not be interpreted as current brand guidelines, current design standards, or any form of commercial representation.