Aerial Alchemy // Illustrated Logo

The Story behind Aerial Alchemy 

Logo that I illustrated for Raven Summer // Aerial Alchemy

  When Raven Summer reached out to me to illustrate her logo for her aerial company, Aerial Alchemy, I was thrilled ! Often I find myself working on projects with people who share similar interests with me because I tend to acquire clients from the community that I'm in ( this awesome health conscious, spiritually uplifting, healing group I'm so fortunate to surround myself with ) and I really enjoy connecting with them about their desires and purpose for growth to see how I can be of assistance. This project kind of took the cake for me, because I too am a dancer and aerialist . 
   She was inspired by another recent project I had completed for Shane's (Govinda ) new project Liquid Seraphim , which features a ballerina- like dancer with wings melting into a water droplet . This logo is more illustrated than normal logos because of the importance placed on having a beautiful seraphim represented in his branding. I have developed a graphic sort of layered vector style that I was happy to utilize in the creation of this, which I feel went very well because of all the positive feedback I received when I shared it. 

Movement is Medicine

  So when I asked her to tell me more about her business, her story really touched me . 
      "  I named my company Aerial Alchemy because Alchemy is a transformative process ,and for me ,aerial has transformed my life in so many ways and I've seen the magic it has done for others as well. 
    I teach an after school program on the reservation here in Montana as a prevention program to get youth involved in fun "risky" activity like aerial so that they don't get involved in drug use. I myself have witnessed the devastation addiction can cause, not only with my loved ones but myself. I used to smoke cigarettes and I smoked since I was 13 years old, my dad used to give me packs of cigs with my lunch money, I smoked for years because my heart was hurting so bad. I still struggle with mental health issues, loneliness and depression... Aerial and movement is my therapy. Movement is medicine. " - Raven
​
  I really connected to what she said because I too have struggled with addiction in my life . Honestly, my story is pretty dark ( perhaps too dark to share) but I can say that art & movement has absolutely saved my life.  There was a time where I was almost ready to give up and end my life, but I had some vivid dreams that showed me how beautiful life could be - real or imagined. I started to paint the content of my dreams and my depression melted away. 
  As an adult, it is hard to avoid drugs and alcohol. These substances are all around me, even the most "conscious" groups struggle with addiction. "Transformational " festivals have emerged, and if I'm not careful, it's very easy to fall into the toxicity of the party that is always present at these events. However, dancing and performing has become a healthy outlet for me to co exist at these events and experience them in a beautiful way. I love to perform and I'm so happy that I've developed the talent to do it professionally as well.  I feel that spending time developing a physical talent such as aerial dancing has been motivation for me to maintain a sober state of mind, not just for my health but for my safety in the air.  The danger of dangling high in the air held up only by my own strength & balance is enough risk for me to satisfy the need to live on the edge. 

Movement as a Catalyst for Transformation

 So the Aerial part of her business name is obvious, but why the term "Alchemy?"

"Alchemy is the transformation of regular material into gold, it also is about enlightenment, transforming the mundane into the divine. Aerial for me has transformed my life and continues to... nothing feels as good as training Aerial does for me, it has always been a personal thing for me, its a spiritual movement. " -Raven

I chose to represent the Alchemy in her name by adding a spiral behind the illustration of the aerial dancer in her logo. Simplicity is important in design, especially logos, because the image is meant to be memorable and used in many different ways such as advertisements, business cards, and signs . All of these ways of experiencing a logo happen somewhat rapidly- a person only views the image for a short time.  I feel that the spiral implies a transformation, blending materials into the divine that is the aerial dancer. 

​