Eighth Graders Create Personalized Logos

Have you ever thought about the processes behind some of the most iconic logos of our time? Does the simple Nike swoosh have a deeper meaning? Was the bite out of the Apple logo meant to distinguish it from a cherry, to create balance, or was it really about the word “byte” in the computer world?

These are some of the concepts eighth graders explored during the creation of their own personal logos in art class.

The personal logo project was rebranded this year by Somers Middle School art teacher Gary Wanderlingh to fit into the Middle Years Programme of the International Baccalaureate Program. The MYP global concept of the personal logo project is personal and cultural expression. Students explored color, symbolism, and how to use small pieces of art to represent larger ideas.

“A logo is something representative of one’s own narrative,” Wanderlingh said. He told the students that although a common symbol for a dog might be a dog bone or paw print, but for others it could be something completely different. “For me it’s a tennis ball because that’s my dog’s favorite thing,” he said.

Wanderlingh said the project spurred students to think critically about how to maintain the integrity of one idea while adding more to the mix as well as how to use color and space.

Students began by making a 30-word list of personal attributes, likes, hobbies, and more.  They created a symbol for each word on their list and narrowed it down by looking for common shapes or themes. From there, they created sketches of possible ideas. Students were encouraged to draw their symbols from a different point of view to make their design more unique and unified. The finished logos are colored paper cut-outs.

Tristan Iglesias loves sports and riding his bike with friends. His logo combines a bicycle with the spokes as different equipment he uses for sports – a golf club, lacrosse stick, and fishing pole.

“It took a little while to brainstorm,” Iglesias said. “I thought of all the things I like to do and I made it come together.”

Mia DiChario wanted her logo to convey how much she enjoys things like the moon and softball. Her design incorporates the red laces of a softball and the yellow of a softball in a half moon shape floating on clouds. “My logo is about the things I find calming – softball and the night,” she said.

Ben Riegel took three of his favorite things -- hamburgers, cities, and the great outdoors to create his unique logo. His hamburger-shaped logo incorporates red and green city building windows delicately cut to represent lettuce and tomato. “Instead of cutting each little square and gluing it, I used an X-Acto knife on colored paper over white,” he said.  To top off his logo, Riegel used snowflakes as seeds on the sesame seed bun.

“This project included a lot of work with color and negative space, a lot of problem solving and a lot of creativity,” Wanderlingh said. “Each student really got the chance to create something for themselves.”

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Nov 14, 2022