BRAND IDENTITY

Rest. Heal. Play. Remember.

SIEC RETREATS

Sisters in Education Circle (SIEC) Retreats is a gathering for Black women who impact K-12 education.

The retreats bring together a diverse, intergenerational group of Black women who are committed to the educational well-being and academic success of Black children.

SIEC Retreats provide time to engage with renowned educational leaders in an intimate setting, share strategies, trials, and triumphs with dedicated colleagues, and glean wisdom from current and past Black women educators. Founder and organizer Akosua Lesesne describes it as “…a transformatively sisterly environment where we’re serious about our double-dutch and Uno.”

The Project

When I met with SIEC Retreats, the program was still fairly new. They wanted to develop a brand identity that could grow with the program.

They knew that they wanted the brand to convey:

  • The softness and tenderness of Black women

  • A feeling of restfulness, peace, and healing

  • A sense of reverence and remembrance

  • A little bit of whimsy and magic, without seeming childish or silly

My Approach

I wanted to create a visual identity for SIEC Retreats that would evoke those feelings of softness, reverence, and magic.

I pulled my inspiration from story quilts, particularly the work of 19th century Black artists like Harriet Powers, as well as the bold, cutout paper style popular in mid-century modern design (and made iconic by the later work of Henri Matisse.)

I had the idea to use the SIEC Retreats tagline (“Rest. Heal. Play. (Re)member.”) to create four icons, arranged in the style of an antique story quilt, and SIEC Retreats’ team absolutely loved the reference: it’s specifically relevant to Black women’s history, and it’s a sweet way to make the brand whimsical and soft without losing the feeling of reverence.