This is a piece I submitted last year for the Shenzhen Futian District logo design competition. My design concept was inspired by the Chinese character "福" (fortune/blessing) — a center with four petal-like shapes blooming outward like a flower, symbolizing Futian's status as Shenzhen's diverse, multifaceted center: continuously developing, inclusive, and nurturing happiness and opportunity.

Logo design has to condense complex meaning into a tiny symbol, so it's inherently open to interpretation — everyone will read it differently. This piece was fortunate enough to pass the preliminary round, but it didn't make it into the final selection.

I once believed this logo really suited the humanistic values Futian wanted to convey. When the finalist list and final results came out, I'll be honest — I did feel a bit down for a while. But eventually I came to terms with it: regardless of the outcome, the design process itself was worthwhile, and that's enough.

Actually, having looked at a lot of design competitions over the past two years, keeping a level head has been my biggest takeaway. And looking back at last year's work now, there's clearly still room to improve — which just shows I've grown this past year too. This is the way.