Meet our alumni
Kelsey Bowman - Graphic Design & Foundations for Design
Original program: Graphic Design & Foundations for Design
Alumni Information
School: LaSalle College Vancouver
Grad Year: 2012
Program of Study: Graphic Design & Foundation for Design
Degree: Diploma
Employment/Professional Information
Company Name: DDB
Location: Vancouver
Job Title: Intern / Jr. Designer
Primary Responsibilities: Conceptual development, brand strategy and development, work on various creative briefs as supplied by my creative director and director of new business.
Describe a Typical Work Day:
Day to day at an ad agency is far from typical. Business changes and evolves so quickly that you have to adjust your plan sometimes hourly to discuss needs of the brands, and designing a variety of materials for different brands of the company.
What accomplishment(s) are you most proud of?
Pitched and sold a concept for an in-house new hire package being rolled out through the DDB offices. In addition to that, I was the design lead on the Servus Credit Union Brand Experience Audit.
What are your creative inspirations or influences? Who are your heroes?
I love typography, especially hand-rendered type. There is a really beautiful feel to that style of type that isn’t really used today. Aaron Draplin has to be one of my design heroes. The man lives and breathes design and reduces ideas down to their purest forms. He also has a really exceptional beard, and I like that.
What do you enjoy the most about your career?
Do you have 12 hours? I love what I do, going to work every day and working with some of the most talented and kind people in my industry is amazing. To be surrounded, supported and pushed to a level I didn’t think I was capable of obtaining, is a really wonderful feeling.
How did your education at LaSalle College Vancouver help prepare you for your career?
Pay attention in Michael Whitney’s classes. He may push you during your time with him, but the skills and habits he is instilling are beyond valuable. Pace of work, level of design standards and his wealth of experience, are things you need to soak in while at school. I don’t think I would have been half as successful without him pushing me throughout my diploma.
What advice do you have for people beginning their careers in your profession?
If you love design and what you are doing, it will shine through in your work. Be ready for rejection, frustrating days and long nights spent in front of your computer. Don’t give in to the challenges that present themselves, the journey is there to shape you into the best designer possible. Work hard and love what you do.
Your profession is constantly evolving, from the technology you use to new career opportunities that didn’t exist five years ago. What trends do you see on the horizon that will affect how you do your job or your profession at-large?
Print is coming back slowly, while we see a trend in social media, web and digital pushes in design and marketing, well done print still stands alone as an eye-catching deliverable that something on screen cannot compare. With what I have seen so far, be well rounded as a designer and ever ready to evolve, because the industry shows no signs of slowing for you to catch up.
