I am so excited to unveil my logo, designed in partnership with Devin McSherry (https://www.devinmcsherry.com/ ), a local graphic designer. Her intuitive understanding and artistic abilities are incredible. She captured what I was picturing in my head perfectly, without me having to explain all the symbolism specifically. I am so in love with her completed design.
So what’s does the Ignite Well-being logo mean? There’s a lot of meaning packed into this graphic.
Central in the design – the snake
Snake represents:
- movement: I am a movement modality practitioner (yogini, tantrika, personal trainer, and physical therapist).
- kundalini made visual: the erotic, life force energy that sits at the base of the spine, important to my tantric, classical yoga training lineage, my work as a sexuality counselor and educator, and personally relevant to for my spiritual and meaning-making practices.
- mysticism and shamanic practice: the shedding or sloughing of the old representing death and rebirth/integration, and the phallic shape and sensual movement of the snake makes it a fertility/gestation/creativity analog. As a shamanic practitioner, sexuality counselor and educator, creative, and death café facilitator, the snake summarizes much of what I do.
Some historical and additional background, snake is birth, death, rebirth, healing combined within many indigenous/traditional pantheons and cosmologies around the globe. This is represented by the familiar ourboros1 and the serpent entwined rod for medical providers2. The World Serpent is part of the cosmology from the Norse tradition3. Snakes were regularly associated with goddesses – my personal favorite is the Minoan snake goddess4. In some traditions, the word “priest” meant “snake charmer” (ie ancient Akkadian)5. Most of us are familiar with snakes from the Judeo-Christian creation story: some suggest that the serpent from the Garden of Eden functioned to sever the ties to earlier spiritual traditions (such as those above, or the Babylonian Great Mother and snake consort5), by marking the snake as ‘evil’. Others suggest the serpent in that creation story is praise-worthy, having brought the light and benefit of knowledge to humanity5.
Lingum and the World Egg:
Just behind the snake is a muted oval, representative of the Shiva lingum6 (a nod to yoga, ) as well as the imagery of the World or Cosmic egg7. The oval and the egg together symbolize the non-binary-ness of life – the integration and union (yoke/yoga) of consciousness, spirit, and body or, in the view of some, yin and yang.
Hands:
In a nod to the yogic lineage of my training (via Kashi Atlanta and Neem Karoli Baba/bhakti yoga lineage, a branch of tantra/classical yoga), the hands are connected to the heart energetically. The hands are how I offer well-being to my clients and community – through soft tissue work, through reiki, through touch to facilitate movement, through creative spaces and cultivation of connection. The hands are paired to recognize the mutuality I have with my clients and community in our work toward their goals.
Plants:
Etched into the hands and snake are plants. I have a relationship to plants – trained in ecology, bioregional herbalism, and shamanic practice, I have witnessed and experienced plants as allies and medicine. I use my understanding of plant modalities to foster nature connection for my community for meaning and environmental activism and during one on one work with clients (ex. making herbal-infused massage salves; teaching them to have communicate with plants).
The moon phases:
This is a reference to the moon circles that I facilitate and to nature connection in general.
The stars:
These are a visual representation of “ignite” – sparks. But I also wanted them to represent electricity (ie life force, vibrancy, kundalini) and the stars (ie bigger aspirations). I don’t “sell” superficial wellness, instead I create spaces for self-reflection and community connection so that desires and goals are honed. My overall professional goal for all those I serve is to awaken (ignite) and recenter joy, pleasure, and meaning. The client’s goals and my own goal are not surface level.
What do you think of the logo? Hopefully this logo depicts not only what I do, but makes you curious about your own well-being goals – what gives you meaning? What do you really desire from your one “wild and precious life” (-Mary Oliver). If you are interested in working with me, feel free to reach out via email ignitewellbeing.naperville@gmail.com (and stay tuned, Ignite merch with this logo will be available for purchase in the near future).
I cannot express my gratitude enough to Devin McSherry Designs for her beautiful work. Please do check out her website (listed above) and support her fabulous creativity.
References:
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ouroboros
- https://www.sporcle.com/blog/2019/02/history-of-medical-symbols/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J%C3%B6rmungandr
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minoan_snake_goddess_figurines
- Walker BG. The Woman’s Encyclopedia of Myths and Secrets. Harper & Row; 1983.
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lingam
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_egg
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Written by Dr. Allison Mitch, PT (DPT), CHEK practitioner, RYT500, sexuality counselor and educator; copyright protected, please cite accordingly.
The image is mine, and it is protected intellectual property. Please do not reproduce or use this image without permission.
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