Here’s the logo you’ll be seeing all over New Rochelle soon.
The multi-colored emblem, designed by freelance graphic artist Deborah Haley to celebrate the city’s 325th anniversary next year, was unveiled this morning at the city’s annual observance of Bastille Day, the French national holiday.
Haley, a New Rochelle resident, was thrilled to have her design, showing undulating rectangles recalling windows of the downtown skyscrapers chosen in a contest.
“I can’t wait to see it all over New Rochelle,” she said.
Two runners-up were also honored: New Rochelle Art Association president Jesse Sanchez and 2009 New Rochelle High School graduate Andrew Morejon.
The ceremony recognizes New Rochelle’s French heritage, and its sister-city arrangement with La Rochelle, France.
Geri Kearns and Viviane Ponlset, members of the New Rochelle Sister City Committee, raised the French flag in front of City Hall on the flag pole next to the one carrying the American flag, and the crowd of more than 125 people there sang the French and American national anthems.
The events will celebrate New Rochelle’s history, starting with the first settlement of the land that would become the city by Huguenot families from France in 1688.
Haley, 47, said her design was inspired by the windows of the downtown skyscrapers, the Avalon apartment buildings and Trump Plaza. She sketched about 20 possible logos, and entered three of them into the contest. The one that won – which she entered only when a friend encouraged her to – was the first one she came up with.
“Other ones that I designed were a little similar, but I went back to this,” she said. “It just all came together.”
Marianne Sussman, head of the committee organizing the 325th anniversary celebrations, said banners with the logo will soon fly from lamp posts around New Rochelle. The logo will be used on a wide range of materials related to the anniversary. The runners up will be used “selectively,” according to Judith Weber, president of the New Rochelle Council on the Arts, and organizer of the logo competition.
In all, 13 artists submitted 19 entries into the contest, from as far away as California, Weber said.
Haley was given a symbolic prize of $325.
“I’m going to take everyone out to lunch,” she joked to the crowd in front of City Hall.
Mayor Noam Bramson congratulated Haley after the ceremony.
“It’s great,” he said of the logo. “It’s got a lot of energy, and it’s perfect for the occasion,” he said.
Sanchez and Morejon were each awarded $100.
Here is the logo Sanchez came up with:
And here’s Morejon’s:
Here are written statements from the artists about how they came up with the ideas:
From Haley:
My inspiration for the 325 Anniversary Logo Design was the manifest diversity of New Rochelle’s populus and the development and cultivation of the Arts as the driving force for cohesion within the City.
The logo’s colorful, undulating squares represent New Rochelle’s growth and economic development along the Sound.
The integration of the orange fleur-de-lis, front and center, reflects the City’s rich Huguenot history and its demographic vibrancy today.
The banners, top and bottom, demonstrate New Rochelle’s ability to continue inspiring and attracting vital and prosperous people to it’s locale.
The logo, with all these elements combined, becomes an icon in which all of New Rochelle can feel a part of, as each person is integral to making our City a great place to live.
From Sanchez:
Logo designs
- A ligature with the letters ‘NR’ are in a classic font reinforcing the traditional qualities of the city, while the background colors are modern and bright representing our future. The nine bar red and yellow bands are derived from the Huguenot flag. Overall, my intention was to create a symbol or icon, rather than an illustration.
- I am using bright colors, and a combination of traditional and modern forms. My intention is to have the four squares work as one unit. The roman numerals add up to the number 325.
- A fun, modern, and somewhat expressionistic approach was taken with this design. I played with shapes and colors with a non-representational, non-specific intention. I relied on the expressive quality of triangular forms, bright color, and a modern (postmodern?) design sensibility. I wanted to capture the spirit of New Rochelle, rather than the concrete, historical, or functional qualities the city possesses.
From Morejon:
I had the idea of integrating the original Fleur De lis logo with all of the qualities New Rochelle has to offer. I constructed this logo using simple figures and different shades of purple to express the New Rochelle community. In addition, I divided the Fleur De Lis into sections to show the urban setting, waterfront, and suburban communities. I want to show the importance of New Rochelle’s rich history as well through the use of the French symbol and the sail ship to represent the settlers. I specifically put the high school in the center of the logo to convey the importance of education. I wanted all the figures to originate from the New Rochelle education system, which is symbolized by the silhouette of New Rochelle High School. I emphasized the fact that our community is two miles from the waterfront by placing sailboats on the inferior portion of the logo. The top portion consists of the urban setting including the “Space Shot” landmark. The lateral portions of the logo simply express the vast amount of activities and culture of New Rochelle. Lastly, the distal ends of the wings are secured with a fire truck and police car to convey a safe and secure community as well. The idea of living in such a vibrant community is easily expressed with this logo and I feel that people would appreciate its meaning and accurate representation of the New Rochelle community.
