Why I like the new Met logo (and why you should give it a chance)

Michael Bierut on Design Observer (emphasis mine):

The first thing I thought when I saw the new identity was quite simple: If this thing was forty-five years old, it would be the most beloved logo in New York.

There are many examples of symbols that might have been dismissed as underwhelming at their birth, from Chanel to Nike. What they have in common is what Paul Rand called “the pleasure of recognition and the promise of meaning.” What everyone gets confused about is the difference between meaning and the promise of it; like the “pursuit of happiness,” what you’re guaranteed is not success but its potential.