Freedom School Mag: A Collection of Poems, Letters, Paintings and Digital Artwork

In March of 2020, Najha Zigbi-Johnson reached out to me in need of a poster for a convening she was organizing for the Harvard Divinity School, Freedom School: A Seminar on Theory and Praxis for Black Studies in the United States. This was right before quarantine protocol for COVID-19 had been issued all over the country. A week later all students all over the country had to leave campus and continue schooling remotely, which obviously meant the convening was no longer happening. Najha, being so passionate about the work her Divinity school has been doing, and it being her last year as a student at Harvard really wanted to put something together that commemorated her class and all the brilliant work they’ve done so far.

So, the idea went from a poster to a magazine where I was asked to design the logo for Freedom School, along with the cover, the table of contents, provide a color story and type family that would remain consistent throughout, and work on layout structure. Lesedi Graveline another Harvard student and member of Freedom School was brought on to co-edit with Najha as well as Giovanna Araujo a graphic designer who worked on layout design and illustrations throughout.

Shown below is the mood board created to express the overall feel and mindset going into the design of this magazine as well as the finished product. View the e-book here.