Strategist, Marketer, Nerd
I was tasked to develop a “brand” for my faculty’s student club. The visual above was meant to be a patch to be used on items that could be co-branded, then sold to students at a low price. They have since decided against it because demand is not certain. [Read more…]
I was the Vice-Director for the NUS Business Rag Committee back in 2010. Rag is an annual Freshman Orientation Programme in NUS. Every year, our freshmen come together to build a gigantic float to compete against other faculties for the ultimate glory of the Chancellor Shield. All this is done for a good cause – Rag is always held with Flag day where donations are collected for the Community Chest of Singapore.
I was tasked to design a recruitment poster to rally more students to take part in this meaningful activity. From the long hours that we put into building the float, strong bonds are formed between students who went through this experience. This poster has thus since become very dear to me since it represents a small effort on my part towards our common goal then.
This was a logo that I designed for the inaugural NUS Study Trip for Engagement and Enrichment to the Middle-East. I was part of the first team to go for a business study trip under this programme, and the International Relations Office requested for a logo to be designed for the it.
I was really inspired by the geometry and symmetry in Middle East architecture for this particular logo. The Muslims believe that we can see a part of Allah in the beauty of nature, and express this in geometry in Islamic architecture. I got the idea of an octagon from a water feature that I came across while researching more about the Middle East.
The word mark was designed to bring focus to the acronym for the lengthy title of the programme: “STEER”. Audiences could easily make out the word from afar, and the title of the programme was more informative rather than meant to be read out.
The color for the logo was inspired by the desert sands of the Middle East, and the corporate colour of NUS. I had the concept of cultural exchange being a mingling of these two distinct groups into one distinctive identity.
The grey of “STEER” brings out the strength and rigour that was intended for the programme.
The trip was eventually featured in the national newspapers, The Straits Times, with the banner I designed. So proud!
This particular project was an enriching lesson for me as a freelance designer. This was for a friend’s church without much prior knowledge of the church or what the camp was about. On hindsight, I would have saved myself a lot of pain – both from murdering my own designs and from endless back-and-forth’s of the design. The client did not have a clear idea on what direction he wanted either, other than the fact that he wanted the key bible verse to be in the design:
“Ask and it shall be given, seek and you shall find. Knock, and the door will be opened to you”
Looking back, it would have helped a lot if I had even just understood more about the demographics of the church to know what kind of tone they would be more inclined towards, or even what sort of message the church had that could be interpreted into the design.
Although the process was certainly quite arduous in my opinion, I definitely gained invaluable lessons from it.
Read further to see the visual process.
[Read more…]
One of the very first design projects that I have ever done, the Nanyang Kayak Racing Team shirt was something very personal to my heart. This was mainly because the people I cared deeply for in my CCA would be wearing it, and winning competitions with this shirt.
Looking back, the design was not the best that I have ever done, but it was a stronger validation for my design that any else that I would face in the future. This was what I had to say when it first came to print:
I have the feeling of birthing. The feeling of delight when one sees the product of his creative energy. The Kayak Racing Team tee is out! I only designed the back. The front is totally the effort of our dear Audrey. But would you look at that?! I’ve had this design for 3 years and finally it’s out in print!! And everyone on the team would wear it. I feel for the first time, proud!