Logo: A recognizable graphic design element, often including a name, symbol or trademark, representing an organization or product. From the Greek “logos.” Term established by Heraclitus as meaning both the source and fundamental order of the cosmos.

That’s a lot of pressure! To try to sum up the entire vision of a business into one graphic element has been driving marketing directors insane for decades. It just doesn’t seem possible. And no logo pleases everyone. How do you keep it from becoming like the camel: built by committee and looking laughable?

When it came time to create our logo, we knew it would be a soul-searching process, so we searched the soul of the island to see what we’d find. We meditated on images of ocean waves, sandy beaches, palms blowing in the breeze, monkeys and birds cavorting…and we searched our own souls and our vision of respect for the land, culture, history, flora, fauna, and people. There were dozens of images that we loved, but none that we felt could encompass everything we are. The island and our vision are so much more than a swaying palm, a beautiful bird, an ocean wave, a playful monkey…we needed to be less literal; more conceptual; bigger.

To broaden our perspective on the issue, we went back and researched the history of the people who lived on this island 1,000 years ago. (See our History page to learn a bit more.) In the sixties, archeologists unearthed some pottery on Isla Palenque made in the pre-Colombian period by the farming community who lived there between 500 and 1400 AD. In looking at the photographs and sketches made by the dig team, we found that the same themes we’d been meditating on are what ancient peoples meditated on back then, and it is reflected in their art. Among the many animals, birds and trees, there was an almost ubiquitous wave pattern. See some examples of it here:

Obviously you’re getting it now. Our Isla Palenque logo is right there, starting us in the face! In fact, if you just peel it off of a classic pottery sketch, as shown in this sketch…

You’ll see it becomes very like our logo’s graphic icon…

Is it an ocean wave? The wind in a rain storm? A sort of a yin/yang symbol? I don’t know. I don’t think it matters. It is a symbol for Isla Palenque that has lasted over 1,000 years. It drives home the message that the island resort community we’re building is only one chapter in the long, long life of this island. Maybe in another thousand years, archeologists will dig up some signage from The Resort at Isla Palenque and see this iconic symbol as I see it: a mysterious yet accessible symbol for what it feels like to be on this eternal island. Or maybe they’ll just see it as a logo. Either way.