BAGUIO CITY, Philippines – In a city where fog slows the day and mountains temper ambition, artist Edmon Fuerte did not set out to design a national symbol. He joined a logo contest, he says, almost casually — something he did as a hobby. At the time, he was in what he calls a period of “quiet recalibration,” both personally and creatively.

That quiet act would soon travel far beyond Baguio.

In December 2025, the governments of the Philippines and Japan announced that Fuerte’s design had been selected as the official commemorative logo for the 2026 Philippines–Japan Friendship Year, marking 70 years since the normalization of diplomatic relations between the two countries. Chosen from submissions from around the world, the logo will serve as the visual symbol of a yearlong celebration under the theme “Weaving the Future Together: Peace, Prosperity, Possibilities.”

A design shaped by place

For Fuerte, place matters. Based in Baguio City, his work is shaped by its terrain and tempo. The mountains, the fog, the way light shifts slowly across the day.

“The city encourages a slower, more attentive way of thinking,” he says. That attentiveness would become central to a logo built not on grand imagery, but on materials and meanings that reward close looking.

When he first encountered the theme, it was a single word that anchored his thinking: weaving. From there came the image of threads. Connected, intertwined, and held together by tension as much as harmony.

Ropes that carry history

The final logo draws from two culturally rooted materials: Japanese shimenawa ropes and Filipino abaca, also known as Manila hemp.

Fuerte was drawn to both for similar reasons. Shimenawa, used in Japan to mark sacred spaces, signals respect, protection, and transition. Abaca, deeply woven into Philippine history, is shaped by labor and landscape, linked to weaving traditions, trade, and resilience.

“They are humble, hand-worked materials,” Fuerte explains, “but they carry meaning beyond their physical form.”

In the logo, these ropes are intertwined, rendered in the colors of both nations’ flags, incorporating the Japanese sun and the Philippine sun and three stars. The image suggests not dominance or fusion, but continuity. Two strands retaining their identity while strengthening each other.

Balancing symbolism and restraint

The most difficult part of the process, Fuerte says, was deciding how far to abstract the references without losing cultural integrity. The design needed to speak across borders and contexts. Recognizable, but not literal; symbolic, but not heavy-handed.

That restraint reflects Fuerte’s broader philosophy. Asked to describe his artistic practice in one sentence, he does not hesitate: “Be minimal, and less is more.”

A quiet milestone

Fuerte was at the office when the official email arrived, informing him that his design had been selected. The reaction was immediate. Thrill, pride, disbelief! His logo had been chosen over entries from around the world.

The recognition comes with tangible rewards, including a round-trip business class flight between Manila and Tokyo courtesy of Japan Airlines. But for Fuerte, the larger weight lies elsewhere.

“I feel grateful and blessed,” he says, knowing his work will be seen not just in the Philippines, but in Japan, across official events throughout 2026.

Asked which word from the theme resonates most, his answer turns personal. Prosperity, he says, because he comes from a poor family, and hopes that one day, prosperity will not just be symbolic, but lived.

What the logo hopes to say

Even without knowing the backstory, Fuerte hopes the logo communicates something simple and human.

“A sense of connection,” he says. “Something quiet, but intentional.”

Looking back, he sees the moment not as a culmination, but as a marker. Evidence that the values he has been cultivating matter: respect for material, sensitivity to culture, and attentiveness to process.

In a year meant to celebrate seven decades of diplomatic ties, it is fitting that the symbol chosen did not arrive with spectacle. It arrived woven patiently and deliberately by an artist who understands that the strongest bonds are often the quietest ones. – Rappler.com