During the last two months we’ve been designing the logo of Fragas do Mandeo. Its creator is Carlos Silvar, vice-president of the board of trustees, who very skilfully used the many suggestions received.
We were looking for an image that combined the themes of woods and river. The first sketches were based on images of trees and flowing water but, being a very recurrent topic, the results were too similar to other entities’ logos.
After considering more than twenty proposals, it was decided to opt for two symbols of life in riverbanks: a damselfly perched on the leaf of an alder. This tree is one of the most abundant along our rivers, thus forming the basis of an important habitat. Unfortunately, many alders are currently suffering from disease caused by a fungus.
Damselflies, together with dragonflies, make up the family Odonata. They are insects that live in the water during their larval stages, going unnoticed. When they metamorphose into adults, they blossom into beautiful flying insects found along riverbanks and streams. Damselflies differ from dragonflies in that they are smaller and they rest with their wings held vertically; dragonflies are bigger and spread their wings horizontally.
For the text we choose a font from more than a thousand available for free. Hence the logo hasn’t cost Fragas do Mandeo a penny.