Adobe Illustrator

11th-12th Grade

 

The typography portrait project began as a way for students to demonstrate their skills in Adobe Illustrator through the creation of a text-based portrait. Students are prompted to research notable women who empower others. Once they choose a woman to make a portrait of, they gather original quotes, lyrics, titles, and any other words relevant to that woman's life. Using Adobe Illustrator tools, juniors and seniors manipulate text to create the form of the face and change the color of each letter to reflect the reference image. The process takes between 15-20 hours to produce. 

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In February 2021, the typography portrait project evolved into art as activism. One of Jardine's seniors asked if they could organize their peers in creating an exhibit of typography portraits of Black women. Prints were sold to fundraise for the school's Diversity Advisory Committee. The exhibit was held in February 2021 and February 2022. It was held in March 2024 as a Women's History's Month exhibit. 

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See news coverage of the first Black Women in History exhibit and sale here. 

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