JEFFERSON SCHOOL AFRICAN AMERICAN HERITAGE CENTER (JSAAHC)

honoring the past and embracing the future

The Jefferson School African American Heritage Center was in need of a design partner to develop a new and distinct visual identity that embodies the center’s core values—tradition, entrepreneurship, experimentation, collectivity, history, and transformation.

PROJECT COMPONENTS

Brand Identity

background

Located in the historic Jefferson School City Center in Charlottesville, VA, the Jefferson School African American Heritage Center (JSAAHC) is a cultural arts and history center dedicated to preserving and honoring the rich heritage and legacy of Charlottesville’s African American community while fostering a deeper understanding of the African diaspora.

JSAAHC offers a series of interdisciplinary programs to describe the cultural production and historical relevance of Black people from the post-Emancipation era to the present moment. The Heritage Centers serves as a convening space for visitors to consider the intersections of local and global social practice and to gain a greater understanding of ourselves and others.

I love this ... The relationship of the letters to each other suggests community and the juxtaposition of the building creates place and embodies the history of place.

–Andrea Douglas, MBA PhD, Executive Director

what we did

After more than a decade using a brand identity that was rooted in The Jefferson School African American Heritage Center’s role as an anchor tenant of the Jefferson School City Center, JSAAHC knew it was time to revisit their brand identity and create something new and distinctive that would be more representative of their core values and reflective of the wide range of interdisciplinary programming they provide.

The objective was to create a brand that feels both challenging and welcoming, honoring the past while embracing the future.

standout features

A critical design element was incorporating the building’s facade into the logo—a symbolic nod to JSAAHC’s historic home. The mark is minimalist yet distinctive, using geometric forms and solid fills to convey boldness, dimensional depth, and a sense of belonging. The subtle open doorway represents transition and transformation.

Mutapa Pro, a typeface designed by Zimbabwean type designer Tapiwanashe Sebastian Garikayi, was chosen for its expressive, confident, and dynamic qualities, reinforcing the center’s mission.

A carefully curated color palette works together to evoke excellence, depth, intellect, and warmth.