Title	THE LOMU FERN
Brand	IRISH EXAMINER
Product/Service	IRISH EXAMINER
Category	G02. Illustration
Entrant	CHEMISTRY Dublin, IRELAND
Idea Creation	CHEMISTRY Dublin, IRELAND

Name	Company	Position
Hugh O'Connor	Chemistry	Art Director
Mark Tuthill	Chemistry	Copywriter
Emmet Wright	Chemistry	Creative Director
Emma Spicer	Chemistry	Senior Account Manager
Ray Sheerin	Chemistry	Managing Director
Luke Sheridan	Chemistry	Account Executive

The Campaign

The idea was to rework one of the most iconic symbols in international sport, the All Black’s Silver Fern logo – to create a simple, clear symbol of mourning that required no words to be understood. To lose Jonah Lomu, one of the greatest players to ever wear that famous shirt, was to see a part of the fern break away forever – from a fern of twenty-three fronds, each one representing a player in a twenty-three man international match day rugby squad. Most importantly, we wanted to create a dignified and gentle image, one that would reflect the personality of the great man himself. Because for such a giant of a man, and for all his obvious physical strength, Lomu had a gentle spirit, a softness the creative needed to capture, as well as his irreplaceable loss to New Zealand rugby.

Creative Execution

The image takes the colours of the New Zealand All Blacks and turns them into a symbol of mourning. The fern has 23 fronds, each representing a player in an international match-day rugby squad. The 11th frond, a reference to Lomu’s playing position, slips away to signify the irreplaceable loss Lomu was to New Zealand rugby. It falls in a downward motion, suggesting a tear rolling away from an eye. Underneath, Lomu’s name and birth and death years are set plainly in white using Helvetica bold – maintaining simplicity, while ensuring prominence. The fern was edited to re-create it white out of black, with one of the fronds removed, rescaled and rearranged to create a final image that could maintain its impact across multiple sizes – an image that would be dignified and gentle, to perfectly reflect the personality of the great man himself.

Indication of how successful the outcome was in the market

Having been briefed to enhance the Irish’s Examiners sporting reputation, the resulting creative quickly became a global phenomenon when it appeared on the Irish Examiner’s social media channels – as it was embraced by sports fans around the world. Its reach and cultural impact criss-crossed four continents. - Reached approximately 6 million people worldwide - @irishexaminer trended across four continents - Praised by New Zealand Prime Minister John Key on national television - Adopted by Lomu’s family, with his sons and pall bearers wearing the image on the day of his funeral. - All image copyrights transferred to the Jonah Lomu Legacy Trust, established by New Zealand Rugby Players Association (NZRPA), to care for Lomu’s sons. - PR conservatively estimated at €750,000 - Coverage in over 50+ articles across international news websites including Ireland, France, Italy, South Africa, UK and New Zealand

As a paper with rich sporting tradition, the strategy was to ensure the creative had a stature reflective of the Irish Examiner’s knowledge of sport, and in particular its passion for rugby. After all, the Irish Examiner is based in Cork, the heartland of Munster rugby – synonymous with one of the most famous matches in the history of Irish rugby, when in 1978 the All Blacks were defeated by Munster. It was equally important to compliment the paper’s readership on their sporting knowledge – to create something that would resonate, and help them express their sense of loss. Just as the Irish Examiner’s readers would immediately understand the idea, we hoped sports fans across the world would also, which is why online versions were created. Now, not only would Irish consumers be aware of the Irish Examiner’s sporting knowledge, but so too would sports fans from France to Australia.