Convention Logo

 

About the Author and Image

This year’s logo was designed by Salt Lake City based, but Seattle-bred artist Charles Strom Jr.. Charles Strom Jr. (Quinault) is a graphic artist and pop culture enthusiast. Charles draws from his love of comic books, fantasy novels, and superheroes to play with various forms and figures that blur reality with the fantastic, and the past with the present. Charles’ work can be found online at https://charlesstromjr.myportfolio.com/.

In this logo, Charles centers the power of the totem pole–created by First Nations of the Pacific Northwest–to assert the importance of Native visibility and leadership. By overlaying the totem pole with an outline of Seattle’s well-known Space Needle, Charles fuses past and present inviting viewers to recognize that Native cultures and power are always still here. This work also celebrates Coast Salish lands through lush imagery of forest trees, Mt. Rainier, and cherry blossoms—a signal of spring and rebirth. Additionally, orca whales, which populate the Puget Sound, represent the importance of family and community sustainability.

This design clearly links with the Convention theme Working For/With Equity and Leadership Toward Sustainability by putting Indigenous communities, visibility, and leadership in the foreground, while recognizing the strength and connection of local Native leadership and wisdom.