Leo Collection
In 1299, a Malay prince disembarked in the once so called island of Temasek and as first thing he met a lion (even if it quite certainly was a Malay tiger). As this apparition was considered a favourable sign, he then decided to settle there his kingdom.
He gave it the name of Singapura that in Sanskrit language means “Lion city” (Singa= lion, Pura= city).
Nowadays, the symbol of Singapore is The MERLION: an animal with the head of a lion (symbolizing Singapura) and the body of a fish (representing the ancient fishermen village of Temasek).
The Lion head also symbolizes bravery and strength, and its chimeric elements reflect resilience and the passion of moving forward, all highly valued qualities among Singaporeans.
A logo can be fixed in the mind of many people and it can make history.
I founded AL.MA.LU at the beginning of the Pandemic. I decided to wait to create a logo for my brand as I felt it was not the right moment to create an image that could really pay tribute to the Lion City.
I have always been fascinated by the Merlion, but at the same time, its “powerful” look has always disturbed me.
You can find several variations of it, both for adults and children, but none of them has ever struck a chord in me.
One evening, during the Circuit breaker, I was doodling all over some masks orders papers (paper that I still keep with me) and I found myself drawing a Ying and Yang.
While I was drawing that symbol surrounded by little stars, my daughter accidentally spilled some water on it.
The melting that derived from that spilling made me thinking of lion’s hair and then is when I drew the two little merlions.
This image, together with the stars I already drew, made me immediately thinking about Singapore. So, I decided to keep only one star that can also be seen as the representation of Venus next to the Moon (my ying and yang).
Due to the Pandemic, these year 2020 has been a real Tsunami for Singapore. I would have definitely preferred reading this history rather than living it and all of this will definitely remain as future memory for all of us.
That is why my Leo is depicted with all the colours of the rainbow: a symbolic bridge towards the outside world which is, in this particular situation, so far from Singapore due to the total closure of the Country.
I want people to restart looking at Singapore like the country it really is: “an island that has never been separated from the entire world but on the contrary, has always been the symbol of intercultural and racial connection”.
