In 2010, a good friend of mine, an Art Curator from Montreal, QC, told me about a Logo Competition for Eva London, UK (Electronic Visualization and the Arts Conference). I’ve looked over to their website to do my homework, read ten times their specs and started to work on a few concepts. I’ve narrowed down to three and zipped them in an email. The moment we all know when we submit an important work was vivid and full of a bizarre energy. I wanted to win like thousands of applicants, right!? So, I waited and waited and nothing happened, until one day when an email popped up in my inbox. 

This was not my usual spam email that I’ve won a vacation for two in an exotic place. Not at all… This was calm, professional, human and straight to the point email, the kind of message  you want to frame it and put it in your Livingroom. Instead of me trying to bring the feeling to the table, why don’t I bring the original message, as it came that day: 

Dear Codrut,

I am very pleased to inform you that, after extensive rumination, the committee of the London EVA Conference has selected the second of the logos you submitted (attached) as the winner of the EVA London logo competition. The judges were impressed with the simplicity, clarity and adaptability of the design.

You will therefore receive a cash prize of £250 and also free registration to attend the whole of the EVA London conference next week, worth an additional £250. See [now]: http://www.eva-london.org/ . We will present you the winning cheque at the event.

Per the terms of the original Call for Designs, we now request that you supply the digital design and supporting materials in object format (such as Adobe Illustrator or Postscript), together with guidelines for its use in various media. You will remain the owner of the design, but we will ask you to sign an agreement granting an exclusive license to the organizing committee to use it in perpetuity for all purposes associated with the Conference.

We would also like to have your ideas on colourways, in addition to black, white and red. Ideally, we are seeking a palette of contemporary colours that we could use in various combinations. At a minimum, red, green and blue should be defined. These should be specified as CIELAB values. Also, we need a specification of the font to add the strap-line ‘Electronic Visualisation and the Arts’.

Well done!

Lindsay W. MacDonald

Professor of Digital Media

Faculty of Media

London College of Communication (LCC)

Elephant & Castle, London  SE1 6SB

That day changed my entire design career as a freelancer or full-time inhouse graphic designer. It was a mirage that still lives today through a strong memory that I know I will be keeping it in my soul for the rest of my days. You sir, Lindsay W. MacDonald, have changed my life that day without even knowing it, and I thank you for that.

I remember that I flew to London, UK, spent the time among you, your collogues, and distinguished quests, observed what EVA London Conference is all about, and got back to Calgary, AB, with a perception about the future of the arts that was entirely new to me at that time. What an amazing event you have there every year, and how fortunate the people in London must be to have such a tremendous pole of influence in the world of interdisciplinary arts. Since then, I’ve always been looking on your website and social media to see what new ideas every year brings. I’m glad that after nine years, my logo is still the corporate identity of EVA London, and I thank you again for that.

Codrut Miron (August, 2019)