Asher Wen

Strategist, Marketer, Nerd

Poster Design: BB 23rd Singapore Company

BB 23rd Singapore Company Poster

It has been a long time since I last designed anything. More than 9 months, to be exact.

Since I started work, I have not managed to find enough time to carry on this interest of mine.  At the same time, there was intentional effort in distancing myself from design.  I reasoned that since this was not going to be a key focus in my career, and also since I am honestly not the best or even among the very good out there, I might as well just not do it at all.

Well, this particular project changed that mindset and reminded me of why I started dabbling in design in the first place. [Read more…]

Identity Design: Yoga in the Citi

Yoga Backdrop White 5
Yoga in the Citi

Yoga in the Citi is a mass yoga event planned by Citibank as a part of their corporate celebrations for International Women’s Day. I was brought in to help with the branding of the event, including coming up with the event title and identity.

The Brief

The brief included coming up with an idea for the name of the event together with the logo. Some restrictions was that the logo had to play with the main colour theme of Purple, Black & White. This was actually really helpful at the beginning because it saved one round of colour exploration and I could just focus on getting the logo elements right.

Part of the brief was also that the logo and event should include an element of women finding their balance between wellness and work.

Some initial ideas for the event title included “Hit the Mats” and “Find Your Balance”. The client decided that “Yoga in the Citi” had a good ring to it, and aptly included the company into the event, and so it was chosen.

Part of the work included designing a customisable electronic direct mailer template, 2 event backdrop designs and a t-shirt design visual.

The Concept

The big idea behind the identity was that of balance. By using familiar yoga poses as a device, I wanted to show that it is possible to have it all: to balance your work, and yet still spend some time to take care of your health. The participation in the event would culminate that idea, where hundreds of Citibankers take time off their busy schedule to attend a mass yoga event.

The additional stroke added an anchor to the design as well as alluding to the yoga mats that participants will be using during the event.

For the backdrop design, a mandala symbol was used to add to the idea of balance and yoga.

The Event

Yoga in the Citi was held on 4th and 6th of March, 2014 in the two different offices of Citibank Singapore.  What you see above are some of the highlights of the event.  There is something enchanting in seeing people coming together and doing something in unison.  It is admirable that Citi took the effort to organise such a large scale event for its employees and in support of International Women’s Day.

I was glad to be able to bring a face to the event that the team had planned, and was especially proud to see my designs on The Business Times the following day:

Business Times Coverage
The event was covered in Business Times the following day

See the article here.

What did you think of the design? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Have a Pretty Frivolous V Day!

Pretty Frivolous
Happy Valentine’s Day to one and all!

It’s been a hectic few weeks for me. We just managed to push out our cards a few days before Chinese New Year at Pretty Frivolous and we had to take a break because of the holidays. Kicking into high gear tomorrow since it’s the big V Day!  It’s going to be quite exciting to see if more people would buy from our booth at NUS Business School. [Read more…]

A Pretty Frivolous Foray.

Pretty FrivolousA logo design gig turned partnership, Pretty Frivolous is the brain child of a dear friend of mine from University.  She has always had a passion for beautiful stationery and wanted to find a way to make them on her own.

The logo was designed to look like a round stamp, with dotted lines reminiscent of perforated lines.  Pretty Frivolous is about good design at an affordable price and I wanted to give a more refined look to it.  What better way than a classic serif font like Georgia?  It was used as the main typeface because of its elegance and flexibility, and how it feels fun yet pretty serious at the same time.

I was approached to help out with the cards, and our partnership was born.  To be honest, it is very exciting for me to be able to see my work produced and sold.  Although painfully aware of my shortfall of talent, I hope you would like the designs!

Pretty Frivolous Cards

Launching its very first collection in time for Valentine’s Day, Pretty Frivolous brings you quirky cards that for your loved ones.  If you are tired of straight-laced cards, or simply want to see a smile on your partner’s face, go ahead and buy a PF card!