Photo: Getty

A London museum purchased the original Rolling Stones’ tongue-and-lips logo over the weekend for $92,500. One of rock’s most famous logos, “The Tongue” was created by John Pasche in 1970 and featured on 1971’s Sticky Fingers. In what was perhaps one of the first cases of rock brand marketing, Jagger reportedly approached the Royal College of Art in 1969 looking to commission images for the band. Pasche designed the logo and ended up working for the Stones from 1970 to 1974. “Face to face with him, the first thing you were aware of was the size of his lips and his mouth,” Pasche said. The Art Fund, a British charity group, coughed up half of the bid price at Mastro Auctions, an online auction house based in Chicago. “The Rolling Stones’ Tongue is one of the first examples of a group using branding and it has become arguably the world’s most famous rock logo,” said Victoria Broakes, head of exhibitions at the Victoria and Albert Museum, where the original will hang. “We are delighted to have acquired the original artwork, especially as it was designed at the Royal College of Art right here in South Kensington by a student who used to visit the V&A’s collections for inspiration. We are very grateful for the Art Fund’s support in helping us acquire this exciting addition to our collections.”

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