“It was an attitude of faith to participate in this contest”, affirmed Gustavo Huguenin, 25, the creator of the winning logo of WYDRio2013, which, as of today, will be spread all over the world.

At first sight Gustavo seemed timid and showed a mixture of anxiety and expectation when he arrived at the WYDRio2013 Local Organization Committee. When he received the phone call he was only informed that he had to come to Rio because of the contest, but he had no idea that he would receive the news that he was the winner.

“I was somewhat hopeful to be among the finalists. I barely made it to the contest. I sent my work on the last day, but that work had been so intense for me that I stopped everything, ran, did everything I could so that I wouldn’t lose this opportunity, and I ended up being surprised with the news that I had won. I was chosen by the grace of God”, said Gustavo.

Born in the district of Cantagalo, on the hills of the state of Rio de Janeiro, this young man attends religious services at the parish of the Sacred Sacrament, in the diocese of Nova Friburgo. Having earned a degree in Graphic Design at the Instituto Federal Fluminense (IFF), he works as a graphic designer and webdesigner in his own office.

“It brings me great happiness to know that my work will be used in the greatest Catholic event in the world, with our Holy Father, and that this image will be associated with the personal encounter the youth of the whole world will have with Jesus Christ during the WYDRio2013”, affirmed the designer.

Having had a Catholic upbringing, he has participated in a Catholic Charismatic Renewal prayer group since he was 19. He is a Minister of Holy Communion and participates in the Communication sector of the national CCR. “Through the Renewal I acquired knowledge and lots of love for the Church. I can serve the Lord through this movement and through the pastoral groups of the Church”, he emphasized.

THE LOGO

Gustavo, who has never taken part in a WYD, said he followed the WYD in Madrid live on the Internet. “I’ve wished so much to be involved in all this, as a Catholic. When they announced that the WYD would take place in Rio, I thought that perhaps there would be a contest I could participate in, and a few days after I heard of it, I had hoped for it. I followed the official news on the WYD site, and in my heart I carried this wish to do something”, he recalled.

For Gustavo it was like a dream. “I composed this drawing the same way I do my other work, using the image for the Church. In the Church we must put spirituality in the images we present. When the world shows something it has to be beautiful, but in our way, it has to show content, it has to carry the meaning of our faith”.

Gustavo recalled that before starting to draw the logo, he read the whole chapter of the Gospel of Matthew, from where the motto of the WYDRio2013 was taken: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations”(Mt 28,19). He meditated so that from those words he could seek inspiration for the image.

“In this passage we see that Jesus met His disciples on a mountain. So, from the beginning, the image of Christ the Redeemer wouldn’t leave me – Jesus, who is on a mountain. Besides being the universal symbol of Rio de Janeiro, it has everything to do with the theme. In the process of creation I first put the concept which must be transmitted. It should have the figure of Jesus, the figure of the disciple and maybe some reference to nations. These three words would be essential if they could be transmitted graphically. Christ the Redeemer represents Christ, the disciple is represented by the heart, for the disciple is one who carries Jesus in his heart, and the nations are represented by the forms that recall Rio de Janeiro, the city which at that moment will be the heart of the world for the youth and which will welcome them, in reference to the mountain and the sea”, he concluded.

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