I attended a high school that was still under construction. The Nueva Upper School was founded in 2014, and my class was the second ever to graduate.

Back then gazing out the window during an afternoon history lecture would reveal a John Deer crane lowering sections of the math classroom into place.

Our walls were bare, our curriculum was experimental, and the biggest school ritual was mourning our nascent soccer team’s most recent loss. Everything and everyone was new.

As a result, Nueva school spirit and school traditions were ours for the making. In an effort to create culture from scratch, my best friend and collaborator Ari Nazem pioneered the Nueva House System. (Think Hogwarts.) With support from the administration, incoming Nueva first-years were sorted into one of four Houses.

Each House—Lykos, Ursa, Ceres, and Aquila—came with an associated animal, meeting spot, and lore. As first-years got to know their classmates, the Houses collided and collaborated through spirit games and cook-offs and movie nights and more. 

In designing and naming the Houses, Ari and I were drawn to the intersection of popular premodern mythology and iconic California wildlife. From “Callisto the Bear on Fire” to “Fenrir the Iron Wolf,” each animal mascot evokes a narrative by bringing to mind familiar folktales and constellations. As we developed stories and titles, we also began sketching on pencil and paper. We were particularly inspired by the work of illustrator Jemma Salume.

From our sketches, Ari and I used Procreate, Keynote, and Photoshop to produce high-definition graphics ready for print and digital media. Check out the mascots below.