From June 17 to Aug. 13, the Embassy of the Republic of Korea and Embassy of Israel hosted a logo contest to celebrate the 60th year anniversary of Israel and Korea’s diplomatic relations for the upcoming year. 

On Oct. 5, the two embassies announced that the logo by SIS student Teresa Hyoju Chang (9) titled “Asomatous Hues” was the winner chosen to commemorate the countries’ strong relations. 

“Asomatous” means having no material body, which Teresa incorporated in her artwork to signify the currently developing relationship between Israel and Korea. 

“I call this logo ‘Asomatous Hues’ because the many brushstrokes are meant to symbolize a shapeless swirl of harmony,” Teresa said. “The relationship between Korea and Israel cannot be defined by a simple shape.”

“Asomatous Hues” embeds many traditions to reflect Israel and Korea’s relationship. It integrates Korean calligraphy and contemporary artwork by Menashe Kadishman, an Israeli artist, to combine both the traditional Korean style and Kadishman’s pop artistic style. The Star of David and yin-yang symbol depict the Israeli and Korean flags, representing the two nations as a whole. 

After two to three hours of brainstorming and devising a basic sketch of the logo, Teresa spent about three days finalizing the design with constant revision of the strokes and colors. 

“It was really mind blowing since I thought it was out of my reach to win a contest like this, as I just entered high school.” Teresa said. “I completed this project mostly on my own, which I think is something to be proud of! I have always had an interest in international relations. I was introduced to this contest through a teacher here at SIS and better cultivated my interest, especially in Korea-Israel relations, since then.” 

The embassy rewarded different meaningful gifts to the top three winners, in order to congratulate them for their hard work. 

Teresa not only won recognition from her logo, but a round-trip between Israel and South Korea. The other second and third place winners were either given a Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 or a Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite for their hard work in creating unique logos. 

“I am aware of Teresa’s logo being chosen and am proud that one of my students is representing Korea by employing their unique skills!” Emily McClintock, Teresa’s Spanish teacher, said. 

Teresa and her dedication serves as an exemplary image to other SIS students, illustrating that individuals can make an impactful change by proactively taking action. She inspires other freshmen to compete with upperclassmen, which freshmen often stray away from doing due to doubt. 

“I read about Teresa winning and think it is amazing!” said Jiyoon Lee (10). “I think students are usually afraid to open up, especially in freshman year, because they think upperclassmen can easily overshadow them. Even as a sophomore, I feel more motivated to go out of my comfort zone too.”