A Destined Path Towards Design
Who is Ariel Chan?
Ariel is a third year, Visual Communications Design student at UW. When asked about her hobbies outside of her major, her interests still remain in the field. It was obvious that she is very passionate about design, participating in many design-related extra-curricular activities, including being in the HUB creative team, the Director of Design of Grey Matters Journal, and the brand designer for DubHacks. Previously, she was the media crew director of the Hong Kong Student Association, or HKSA, but had to discontinue this role due to time conflicts and other interests. However, it was in this experience that she gave birth to one of her favorite designs; for 2 years, Ariel was designing posters and art concepts for ‘Little Hong Kong,’ an annual event that the HKSA hosts. Her 2018 Little Hong Kong design was inspired by the game, Monument Valley, which features a minimalistic art style and architectural designs. Outside of design, she also enjoys being active through running and outdoor biking.
How She Got into the Field of Design
Ariel is an international student from Hong Kong, only having moved to the U.S. to study for college. “It was a culture shock in the way I transitioned. I had to be more independent and immerse myself in a new culture,” she says.
Ariel considers her parents to be quite traditional, explaining why she was first hesitant about pursuing design, as there is a concern of her being a ‘starving artist’. However, Ariel took a graphic design class in high school which swayed her toward this field. Through these classes, she realized that “art can be something so systematic and productive, and also very meaningful and purposeful”.
In her Junior year, she participated in a design immersion summer program at Cornell University that taught her “to look beyond aesthetics and teach [her] about ergonomics, and the practical side of design”. After that, she was set on pursuing this medium. She confronted her parents about wanting to go after this area of study, and they eventually supported her decision, realizing it is what she was passionate about. She attributes community service and traveling as some of the main influences for combining a creative pursuit with the act of service by designing for others.
Her favorite project from her AP art class was her final project featuring a 3D 12-piece concentration project about a story line of a psychological development of a young boy, depicted this piece by piece, through a seasonal adventure. She considered this an important milestone in her design career, getting high praise from many of those around her.
Future Plans
Ariel has accepted an offer to be an Experience Design Intern this summer at AirBnB, located in San Francisco. Her goal through this internship is to experience the design side of the app, by improving its accessibility and the relation between host and guest. She will be tackling the issues regarding how you book, contact, and the overall experience as a whole. Initially, she applied as a Graphic Design Intern at Tink Labs in Hong Kong, but was recruited as a UX design intern as they noticed she is more adept in interaction design. “Experience design really grants a broad perspective of how design can be interrelated in storytelling and how you can incorporate branding, and facilitate that interaction with your audience and users,” she says.
Her Inspirations
Ariel’s most influential figures are her parents, who genuinely support her career in design, despite being hesitant in the beginning. She also values her entire family, including her siblings, who inspire her to be a better designer.
As previously mentioned, her AP art class was a starting point on her career, especially her AP Art teacher at the time who showed her many opportunities into the field. She credits her teacher for introducing a design festival in Tokyo, where she was able to sell many of her pieces and even achieved a best-selling title!
Her artistic inspirations are initially derived from her love for video games because they broadened her perspectives on different art styles and forms. Her favorite designers include Olly Moss and Owen Davey. Olly Moss is the designer for FireWatch, a video game.
“I thought the graphics were really beautiful, trying to achieve that minimalism as well,” she says about Moss’s games.
Owen Davey designed an app called Two Dots, another game known for its minimalism. Although she briefly had an interest in game design, she is now more focused on experience design.
When asked about being a woman in UX Design, Ariel emphasize the need to be creative, regardless of the way one identifies themselves. “Collaboration can happen between any gender; being a women in this field makes it special because I am representing my population,” she says.
The final comment she wanted to include was, “Shoutout to UW design!” You can reach out to Ariel through her email arielc3@uw.edu or stop by her website: ariellchan.com
