Post chooses new logo for Tu BiShvat

The winner of The Jerusalem Post-Jewish National Fund Tu Bishvat logo competition is Ian Parkinson, a resident of Wirral Peninsula, UK.

The winning entry was selected by a team of judges that included Prof. Sheizaf Rafaeli, president of Shenkar College of Design; Tania Coen-Uzzielli, director of the Tel Aviv Museum of Art; and Steve Linde, editor-in-chief of The Jerusalem Report.

The new logo replaces The Jerusalem Post logo on the Jpost.com home page over the Tu Bishvat holiday, which began January 27 at sundown.

 

Parkinson told the Post that he decided to enter the logo competition to further promote the Abraham Accords between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. He also said he wanted to celebrate the trees.

“A tree is a visible, long-enduring vision of life itself,” he said. “The very oxygen we need to sustain life is given from its leaves.”

Darielle Franco, a former Maryland resident who now lives in Jerusalem, came in second place.

She said that she admires both the Post and JNF-USA, and chose to enter the competition to partake in an experience that celebrates nature.

“I spent most of my childhood outdoors, and I loved watching the trees change as the seasons changed,” she said.

 

Third place was awarded to Nicole Perez from Jerusalem.

Perez, who made aliyah from France in 2010, was born on Tu Bishvat, loves hiking in parks and nature reserves, and studied the botany of Israel at the Jerusalem Botanical Gardens.

“Open your eyes and watch the blossoming trees; it is good for the soul,” she said.

While Tu Bishvat is a Jewish-Israeli holiday, it has universal elements that appeal to all, explained Rafaeli from Shenkar College. In that sense, he added, language and communication, while local, can also become a bridge for international communication.

Coen-Uzzielli pointed out that design affects cultural identity, social structures, economies, cultural development and environments.

“It is a powerful method to promote cultural identity, and therefore it is a tool to communicate about a firm, a message, a culture, and develop a visual identity,” she noted.

“The new Jerusalem Post logo competition, in cooperation with JNF-USA, zooms in on the world in which we live,” added Linde. “JNF-USA focuses on the environment and trees; The Jerusalem Post on the news and views. The new logo is all about growth and our faith in the future.”