Visitors, in person and online, will soon see the first step in a major makeover for the Lansdale Public Library.
A new library logo has been chosen, and logo contest winner Kim Moses says she hopes it represents the library’s limitless potential.
“I know it’s simple, but a book represents a library, so I figured — let’s go with what everybody knows,” she said.
Located at 301 Vine Street, the Lansdale Public Library has undergone several changes in recent years, including a new director in fall 2023, a revamp of the library’s bylaws and overseeing committee, and appointments of several new members to the board of directors, while the borough has also applied for $2 million in state grant money to fund an interior renovation that could include new furniture, utilities and more.
Since February, the library has also been publicizing a logo contest, seeking new designs to replace the library’s current logo, which library Director Shira Pilarski said is thought to date back to the late 2000s. More than 30 entries were submitted for the logo contest, and library board members chose the winner: Kim’s design, which features the letter L alongside a stylized silhouette of the spine and pages of a book, atop the words “Lansdale Public Library.”
“I am excited about the opportunity we have to invite the community to reimagine the role a library — and our library — can play in our lives. Our new logo, along with updated mission and values statements that the board of directors are currently working on, marks this moment as one of positive growth, and our new logo helps to honor this new chapter in the library’s story,” said library board secretary Darian McKenzie.
“To me, this design sets the library apart as its own entity in our community, while still honoring the role the borough has played in supporting the library, both financially and with its leadership up until the recent adoption of a new board structure,” she said.
Moses said she drew inspiration for the new logo from the town’s Lansdale-L logo seen all over town on borough buildings and banners since a 2012 branding initiative.
“I saw the ‘Lansdale in motion’ sprinkled around town, with the motion of the L, so I wanted to do something with that — and then, I saw the colors,” said Moses, with the blue and gold of her logo chosen to match the town’s colors and the current décor of the library interior.
Moses said she and her husband Richie Leibovitz have lived in Lansdale since 2017, and their three-and-a-half year old daughter Kayla isn’t a library regular yet, but will be soon.
“I just felt like she’d wreak havoc in here, but she’s three-and-a-half now, so I feel like she’ll be a little more well-behaved. I’m excited to bring her here — she was too young, I just feel like she’d’ve been a Tasmanian Devil,” Moses said.
Her winning logo wasn’t her first try: an original design for the logo contest would’ve played off of the library’s architecture, but didn’t make it past a first draft. “I just hated it, and I scrapped it, and then I came up with this new idea, so it was probably a couple of hours to go from one idea to the next, but I feel like this one turned out a lot better.”
A graphic designer by day, Kim said she used Adobe Illustrator to create the logo, and enjoyed applying ten-plus years of experience in design to a project closer to home.
“This was really fun to work on. I don’t get to do as many creative projects, for work it’s more corporate stuff and minimally creative, so it’s a lot of fun to get to do something like this,” Moses said.
“I just want them to think: this is a place I want to go. The library is like the heart of the community, so I just want them to go and enjoy themselves,” she said.
Leibovitz added that he was honored to have helped: “She asked my opinions, and I’m obviously biased, because she’s just a fantastic, creative person. Sometimes the simplest ideas are just the best, and I’m just very proud of her,” he said.
Pilarski added that she’ll start to roll out the logo soon on the library’s current website, an updated version of that site that’s in the works, social media pages, and library giveaways at town events — “We’re due for more swag” — and could incorporate the new logo into the interior renovations depending on the grant funding, which could be announced by late summer.
For more on the library visit www.lansdalelibrary.org, search for “Lansdale Public Library” on Facebook or follow @LansdaleLibrary on Twitter.
This article appears courtesy of a content share agreement between North Penn Now and The Reporter. To read more stories like this, visit http://www.thereporteronline.com.