A Mythical Society
AES is a Chicago-based society of educators and student leaders looking to enrich their local curriculum with Aztec culture. They needed a brand identity and kit of parts that echoed their values and mission statement, while also making the topic visually engaging for students.
I chose the mythical beast Quetzalcoatl as the design foundation, because the god-like creature championed knowledge and education practices amongst youth in ancient Aztec mythology.
Color
The word Quetzalcoatl comes from the Nahuatl word Quetzalli, which literally means long, green feather. From there, I derived complimentary colors from Aztec codices such as the Codex Borgia shown below.
Society postcard
Line
Line was a tool I used to combine the appearance of scale and feather, as Quetzalcoatl was half serpent, half bird.
Texture
Visual experiments with ink and paper helped infuse original textures into the work. Textures pulled from natural photography also provided a meaningful depth to the linework.
Society scholarship award
Aztec temple from activity guide
A functional logo
AES wanted a pin for qualified graduating students, and this meant a logo that could be represented by one continuous line. The metal wire form meant that the sharpness of the curves was also limited.
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Pin making process
All society materials
Activity guide
A collection of activities for students.
Pin making process
Postcard
An invitation for interested educators.
Certificate
A scholarship given to committed student-leaders.
Pin
Award given to all members upon gradutaion.
