As an art director, I glean inspiration from anywhere I can get it. Assignments come in from clients; and briefs from account executives that point us in directions or narrow down where our spheres of influence come from. With our client Cherokee, NC, the inspiration stretches back thousands of years.
It is a great honor to be asked to work on any project for the Cherokees, and we feel a great responsibility for how their people, organizations, and businesses are represented. Our main source of inspiration for logos, icons, and symbols comes from a book called Sun Circles and Human Hands: The Southeastern Indians – Art and Industry. This book mainly explores the Mississippian Period, and is a great source for photography depicting pottery patterns, decorative shell gorgets, and stone carvings. These artifacts were unearthed on ancient Indian mounds in Spiro, Oklahoma; Moundville, Alabama; and Etowah, Georgia.
While using this book as a resource, we still like to inject a touch of modern design and original creativity. This combination makes the design work fresh and custom, but retains a firm foot in history.
Here are some examples we have created over the past few years:
