Seed Packaging
This design came from a school project where we were tasked with creating a design for a garden seed package. The required information was the oz., “Gardener’s Collections” as the brand, and at least one illustrated flower. I decided to make a seed mix based off of queer histories and literature. The mix name “Wilde Poetess” comes from Oscar Wilde, an influential gay playwright from the mid to late 1800s, and Sappho, an lesbian and an Archaic Greek poet who was given the nickname ‘The Poetess’ for her lyrical style of poetry. This entire design was created using Illustrator.
Seed package front design
The Assets
Carnations, specifically green ones, were popularized by Oscar Wilde as a symbol of a mans attraction to other men. It is said he picked this trend up from Paris where is was already being used.
Violets have been a used in the queer women community since Sappho used them in her poems in conjunction with erotic references to women. She used the symbolism of violets and other purple flowers persistently for years in her writing and it has carried on throughout.
“Pansy” was once a belittling term for a gay man implying weakness and effeminacy, but has since been used for empowerment. The “Pansy Craze” of the 1930s is considered to be the beginning of gay night life culture, where drag artists used to be known as “pansy performers”.
Lavender (and other purple hues) have been associated with the LGBT community since Sappho. Lavender fully entered gay culture in the 19th century, but saw a boost right after the Stonewall Riots. The term “Lavender Menace” was adopted by lesbian activists in 1969 after the imaginary threat of lesbians to feminism was described that way by the leader of the National Organization for Women.
