In 1964, Japan welcomed the world to the Tokyo Olympic Games, a pivotal moment symbolizing the nation’s economic recovery in the post-war era and its connections to an international audience.
With visitors arriving from across the globe, many speaking little or no Japanese, a new approach to communicating across languages was needed. While earlier Olympic Games occasionally used images to identify sports, Tokyo 1964 marked the debut of the first coordinated system of sports pictograms.
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Designing without words
The challenge was clear. How could Tokyo host an international event without relying on the Japanese writing system?
The Games’ design director Katsumi Masaru assigned the project to designer Yamashita Yoshirō from the newly established Nippon Design Center. Yamashita developed a coordinated set of 20 sports pictograms. Each of these minimalist silhouettes distilled a sport to its essential movement and form.
Meanwhile, Tanaka Ikkō, a graphic designer from the Nippon Design Center, oversaw the creation of facility pictograms that allowed both athletes and spectators to find their way around with ease.
Despite seeming like a straightforward task, the design team encountered various difficulties with realizing universal designs due to cultural differences. Nagai Kazumasa, graphic designer and advisor at the Nippon Design Center, recalls that several pictograms such as showers and western-style toilets proved particularly challenging. ‘We knew they existed in hotels overseas, but didn’t know what they looked like,’
Once these hurdles were overcome and designs were finalised, these pictograms would go on to set the standard for wayfinding systems at future Olympic Games and international venues.
For the first time in Olympic history, a coordinated set of pictograms was developed to identify sports, venues, amenities and facilities.
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Design influences and legacy
‘The Games of 1964, although held nearly 60 years ago, have a lasting influence on all of the Games that we see today. Down to the pictograms, down to the iconic branding across the board,’ said Simon Wright, Director of Programming in an introduction of the Tokyo 1964: Designing Tomorrow exhibition held in Japan House London in 2021.
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The Tokyo 1964 pictograms set a global standard for future Olympic Games. They inspired subsequent host cities to develop their own custom pictogram systems, reflecting local styles and cultural identities.
Over five decades later, the Olympic Games returned to Japan in 2021 after being postponed by a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A design team led by Hiromura Masaaki spent two years creating a new series of sporting pictograms. Paying homage to the legacy of the 1964 Games, these designs convey the dynamism of each sport, capturing athletes in motion. Japan continued their innovative spirit by introducing animated pictograms for each sporting event, developed under the direction of motion designer Iguchi Kōta.
A gallery featuring The Tokyo 2020 Kinetic Sports Pictograms ©IOC / Hiromura Masaaki, Iguchi Kōta – 2020*.
- The Tokyo 2020 Kinetic Sports Pictograms ©IOC / Hiromura Masaaki, Iguchi Kōta – 2020*
The facilities pictograms also contributed greatly to the development of global communication graphics. In the 1960s, the international design organization Icograda, among others, worked to establish an international set of pictograms. This was finally achieved in 1980 with ISO 7001, a standard set of public information symbols that remains in use today. These pictograms are often seen in airports, stations, hospitals, and other public spaces.
The Olympic Games as a creative catalyst
The Tokyo 1964 pictograms introduced a powerful visual system that transcended language and reshaped how we navigate and understand space through visuals. They demonstrated how thoughtful designs could communicate to a global audience with clarity and elegance.
Through Pictograms: Iconic Japanese Designs, Japan House London invites visitors to reflect on how these simplified graphic symbols carry significant meanings and continue to shape the way we understand the world.
To explore more about the evolution and enduring impact of Japanese pictograms, visit Pictograms: Iconic Japanese Designs (30 July – 9 November 2025) at Japan House London.
*This video is also available to view at Pictograms: Iconic Japanese Designs. The exhibition is intended to educate and foster a deeper understanding of graphic design and visual communication. Its primary aim is to share industry knowledge and insights.