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This year, the Christmas card of the President of Estonia is entitled ‘An Ode to Surprising Estonia’
11.12.2015
The main motive of this year's Christmas card is boldly facing the unknown. It is an ode to the enterprising spirit of Estonians and Estonian success stories on the world stage in business, the arts and sports. On the other hand, the card also has a more personal side; the President's farewell at the beginning of the end of his tenure.
The dream world depicted on the card combines all of these ideas. From left to right, here are some more or less hidden meanings, according to the authors:
· People draw the Roman numeral X (10) on the side of the hill with their sledges, referencing the last year of the President's tenure.
· The letters scattering from the cloud, sent from the right corner of the card, signify the cloud technology across the country. The constellation of the European Union is behind the cloud.
· A merry fir tree is kiiking behind the forest. Kiiking is a sport so outside the box that one cannot be completely certain whether it is happening in real life or in dreams.
· The moon playing blues harmonica behind a cloud is a nod to the President's love of music.
· The little man catching the stars on the moon. Even if the target is extraordinary and one is a little short of the mark, the result is still wonderful. An encouragement to our entrepreneurs.
· Under the moon, on the ground, the three wise men transfer gifts to each other – transfer. wise. men.
· The sleigh of Father Christmas is a hybrid – partly powered by reindeers, partly by a jet engine – a reference to Estonian activities in developing environment-friendly technologies and services, such as Elmo rent, the Exo bike or an Eleon wind turbine.
· A hot-air balloon of fish with one brave passenger is floating above Father Christmas – Estonians have a habit of going off to explore the world, but it is necessary to bring a rope ladder so they can return home.
· In the centre, another technological marvel is rushing towards the Christmas tree – the delivery robot Starship.
· On the horizon, you can see one of the best known hills in Estonia – a reference to the singer Tõnis Mägi (Hill).
· Next to the hill, a man is trying to catch clouds on top of a fir tree – with the help of a rake, because despite limited resources, he can improvise to attain his goals.
· A fir lady lives in the next fir tree house, and she brings a fir tree to her home for Christmas. A reference to making do with what you have and perfect self-sufficiency.
· An oddity waddles out from behind the farmhouse – wife-carrying. Estonians are innovative, even in a bizarre field.
· The star-gazing periscope on a cloud with a top hat is a reference to Estonia's aspirations to join the ranks of space states – a nod to EstCube.
· The Teekond ('journey') sweets are falling out of the President's bag – when going off on a journey, the President leaves behind a trail of sweets so you can trace your way back home.
· Mice are an inside joke between the Office of the President of Estonia and the President – when the cat's away, the mice will play. A rich selection of cheese promises a great feast.
· However, the seat will not be left empty for long; therefore, the blurry future in the foreground is already breathing down everyone's necks. Looking at the shadow, one gets an impression of a mysterious person lurking. On closer inspection it is something else completely – a friendly wave.
The illustrations were made by Karmen Heinmaa. On the e-card, the illustration is complemented by the tune Mu süda, ärka üles by the group Heinavanker, conducted by composer Margo Kõlar. You can also participate by clicking the characters with singing voices (a hint: there are seven in total hidden on the card).
The card was made by the agency Brand Manual with Mihkel Virkus. The online version of the card was created by Indrek Vainu with the Datalab team.
You can have view the President's digital Christmas card here: https://www.president.ee/christmas/
Office of the President
Public Relations Department
