Triangular thunderbird

In many Native American cultures, the thunderbird is a symbol of benevolence and strength.  Though fierce and powerful, thunderbirds also brought with them the rain.

I wanted to take a couple ideas and merge them into something kind of simple but with some particular details.  Most native depictions of thunderbirds are very stylized and simple so I wanted to keep my shapes fairly simple as well.  I was also inspired to try and make it as triangular as possible.  I looked at the alchemical symbol for air and it was a triangle with pointed end up and a line through it.  Technically, a simple triangle minus the line through is the symbol for fire but I kind of interpret lightning as a combination of air and fire so I think it works.  I had planned on using some standard native colors with this (red, yellow, white, black) but decided that I preferred the blue “gradient”.  I get a sort of “air force insignia”-feel to this as well, which is not what I was planning, but I’m not mad at it either.  Overall, I’m pretty pleased with it.

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