Lino Dainese set out to design and manufacture motorcycle riding gear after seeing leather-clad Ton-Up Bike riders during a trip to London, England, in 1968. Before the Italian entrepreneur could produce his first set of leathers, though, he had to establish a recognizable logo that also captured the brand’s ethos.
In 1971, Lino Dainese himself developed the first drafts of the company logo prominently featuring a Speed Demon figure. The designs varied from full-bodied renditions to side profiles to head-on portraits. Of course, the Demon/Devil Head design won out in the end, but the logo continued to evolve over the decades.
While some may find the iconography somewhat disconcerting, the brand believes that “The Speed Demon is the inner spirit that moves every human to push the limits further and to dare beyond, expressing their full potential. It is in every one of us. It’s our passion, our determination, our willingness to achieve what we’re meant for.”
The simplified Demon Head design may be the firm’s signature nowadays, but collectors can still find vintage racing pieces brandishing the early Demon Head Wheel design posted by the Dainese Instagram account on April 26, 2022.
Despite the many iterations, the Demon Head logo remains sacred to the brand. After acquiring AGV and POC helmets, Dainese reworked the brand typeface to better serve as an umbrella for the family of companies. However, the designers didn’t touch the long-established Demon Head, as the firm’s notoriety firmly relies on the logo’s simple and recognizable design.
However, the Italian gear maker is happy to explore different interpretations of the Speed Demon spirit. In 2018, Dainese commissioned New York artist Othelo Gervacio to develop the Demon Flower graphic for its Dainese72 retro apparel line. Though the Demon Head logo has represented the Dainese brand for 50 years, the brand continues to capture the Speed Demon’s daring spirit by pushing the design’s limits.
