Published: 09/18/2022 18:01:57
Modified: 09/18/2022 18:01:17
LEVERETT — In preparation for the city’s 500th anniversary celebrations in 2024, members of the Leverett 250th Committee are launching a logo contest on the same day that a new tile mural is dedicated at the Leverett Library.
The dedication ceremony for artist Judith Inglese’s ‘Past is Present is Future’ mural on September 24 will be held at the 75 Montague Road location from 3pm to 5pm and will feature musicians and light refreshments.
While the dedication of the mural on the library’s exterior entrance wall is taking place, the City’s Artistic Talents Recognition Committee is encouraging current and former adult residents to submit a commemorative logo design to be used in advertising, promotional and fundraising articles. such as t-shirts in the run-up to and during the anniversary year.
Entrants should fill out an online form at bit.ly/3Lqf5qV and submit a drawing through the city’s Celebrate 250th website at bit.ly/3diLgMB.
People can also submit designs and forms to Leverett Town Hall, the Leverett Library, and the Leverett Village Co-op. The closing date for entries is December 14th, a winner will be selected and announced in early 2023.
Committee member Ann Tweedy said the winning logo will be based on a popular vote, with all entries posted on page 250 of the city’s website with a link to the vote. Paper ballots are also available at the three collection points.
When Leverett celebrated its 200th anniversary in 1974, the logo, or 200 year symbol as it was known, was designed by Stella Schoenhaut.
With a tree in the foreground, with the city’s name in cursive in the leaves and the number 200 in the roots, and a backdrop of rolling hills and a picket fence, a history book coinciding with the bicentenary states that the logo “means the growth of Leverett, well nourished by the strong roots laid down by the early settlers 200 years ago.”
Inglese, who has created public murals inside and outside buildings in Amherst, Washington DC and Rockville, Maryland, is expected to be present at the dedication.
The mural depicts local people enjoying biking, kayaking and hiking, with individuals looking ahead to represent the time from Indigenous to Colonial to Modern. The mural depicts Leverett as a hilltop town crowned by white doves flying over the town’s most recognizable feature, the New England Peace Pagoda, while at its foot are ponds, wetland wildlife and activities such as fishing.
Scott Merzbach can be reached at [email protected]
