Sault friendship centre seeks Indigenous artists for new logo

The Indigenous Friendship Centre in Sault Ste. Marie wants to rebrand itself with a new logo to go along with its new name, and it’s looking to Indigenous artists in the Algoma District and beyond for help. 

According to a social media post from Monday, the organization is offering a grand prize of $2,500 and a new iPad for the winning logo design. 

“The visual focus of the new logo should reflect a more modern vibe yet capturing Indigenous culture,” said the post. “Not using too much colour, yet complementary colours should be used in the new version of the logo.  

“It is important that the logo is bold, but yet somewhat soft and stands out. We are often involved in partnerships and projects where there are multiple partners – it is important the logo stands out in the work we do.”

Originally known as the Sault Ste. Marie Indian Friendship Centre, its membership voted in favour of dropping the word ‘Indian’ from its name in November of last year, opting to be known as the Sault Ste. Marie Indigenous Friendship Centre — marking the first time the local organization has changed its name since its incorporation in 1972.  

The group has since opted to change its name again, and will be now be known as the Indigenous Friendship Centre in Sault Ste. Marie (IFCSSM) going forward. 

“With the ever-growing population of East Indian people coming to our city and settling here, we had to make a distinction because we were getting calls,” said friendship centre executive director Cathie Syrette during an interview with SooToday earlier this year. “I just felt like it was time to push that envelope of a name change.” 

Syrette said the name change is also in line with moves to drop decidedly more outdated terms such as ‘Indian’ and ‘Aboriginal’ and replace them with ‘Indigenous’ as a blanket term for tribal nations across Canada. 

The friendship centre’s rebranding committee — comprised of board members, staff and community members — will judge the entries. The artist with the winning logo redesign will have their name published on social media platforms with their permission.  

Deadline for entries is Friday, June 2, 2023 at 3:00 PM and can be sent to [email protected] with the subject line: NEW LOGO CONTEST.