LIZ CHAN graphic design + art direction
hello
there
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if you’re curious to know... Life is full of details, some relevant and others
And that means changing and exploring differ-
irrelevant. For example, the fact that I am female,
ent styles, forms, and typefaces...and doing so
born in Wilmington, Delaware, and 5’5” may be
as much as possible. Go simple sometimes. Go
relevant if I were filling out a form to renew my
ornate and intricate other times. Don’t just use
driver’s license, but irrelevant if I were meeting
those same three to five typefaces, learn to use
someone new and wanted to engage that person
fifty more. Even if something feels different and
in a real conversation. As a person about to look
strange, try it. Sometimes doubt is better than
at my portfolio, let me engage you with some
certainty, because it really takes you places that
relevant details about myself.
would have otherwise been undiscovered.
I have learned a lot of things about design. Some
I am still young and always full of a certain kind
see it as a set of rules: use only three to five
of optimism. I dispense my own beliefs not to act
typefaces for the rest of your life, have a style
as though I already know the truth to everything.
and stick with it, and “less is more.” Others look
But to remind myself of what I need to strive for.
at it more as freedom. Break the grid, explore
Young and old, all designers ultimately have the
different styles, and believe that it’s not “less is
same vision: to do or say something important in
more” but rather “just enough is more” (as Milton
a way that is strikingly beautiful and influential.
Glaser once eloquently said). I cordially invite you to view a piece of my lifelong I believe in the latter. Design shouldn’t only be
journey towards this goal. This portfolio repre-
about what rules you know and follow. Design is
sents a part of my life where I will eventually look
freedom. Design is innovation. Design is change.
back and see where it all began. Thank you.
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LU X Y
intageluxy couture vintage couture Fashion Identity
“Where luck meets luxury”—combine
cker street new nyyou10012 these two ‘L’york, words, and will get
Luxy, a high-end vintage couture shop 212-367-9872 with one of a kind designer pieces.
The identity of Luxy is sleek, elegant and sophisticated, with a personal touch of illustrated patterns and script type.
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LUX Y
intageluxy couture spring lookbook Art direction and print design
Each season, Luxy releases a lookbook
cker street new york, ny 10012 showing clothes and accessories that will be put up for auction. All of the 212-367-9872
proceeds will go towards the featured charity, which changes every season.
My main source of inspiration for the creative direction came from Audrey Hepburn movies, such as Breakfast at Tiffany’s and Roman Holiday. Art Direction: LIZ CHAN Photographer: INA JANG Model: SHIORI MIYASHITA
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EISENBERG’S SANWICH shop Restaurant Identity Eisenberg’s Sandwich Shop is a divine Manhattan eatery that has been around since 1929. Known for their BLT’s, tuna sandwiches, hot pastrami, and egg creams, this place is as classic New York as you can get. During my first visit, I was impressed by the food and the experience. But as for the menu design, that was a different story. It needed a redesign (even the owner admits it), so I took inspiration from the restaurant’s historical significance, and created a giant menu inspired by 1920s newspaper tabloids. From there, I decided to expand upon the identity, one that represented it’s old school charm and character with some witty humor and the right typography to go with it.
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lover letter kit Product and Packaging A pencil. Some blank sheets of paper. Envelopes. And one tube of lipstick. Having these mundane objects together gave me the idea to create and package a love letter kit. As a person who has been in a long distance relationship for over 2 years, I realize that being in the 21st century has made it much easier to stay in touch. Technology has allowed long distance couples to write e-mails, share photos on Facebook, and even video chat live through Skype. All of these things are so instantaneous, that many are forgetting what long distance relationships used to be all about: hand written love letters, sealed with a kiss. Here is a kit for those of us who want to show our love the old fashioned way.
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lou is dead Poster Design On October 24th, 2008, I witnessed an incident that I would never forget. I wanted to tell my story, using type to narrate what I had seen that morning. I still to this day cannot not find anything on the news about what had really happened, so the whole thing is still a big mystery to me. Because of that, I decided to name the man Lou.
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What really got me the most was the sound I heard. It sounded like someone threw a large television from the top floor. I never knew a human body could make such a deafening sound. —Journal Entry, October 24th, 2008
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eastern congo crisis Poster Campaign The Second Congo War claimed more than 5.4 million lives, the most deadliest casualty since World War II. Till this day, the death toll is thirty times more than the amount of deaths from Haiti’s recent earthquake in 2010. Eastern Congo is also described as the worst in the world in terms of sexual violence and rape. There have been over 40,000 reported cases. Since not all cases are recorded, it is expected that there are a lot more. What’s worse is that this disturbing issue is not getting enough attention and aid. I read first hand accounts of 9-year-old girls getting raped and watching their family members get mutilated and tortured in front of their very eyes by militia men. Using design, I wanted to create more awareness about this crisis. It is often said that rape victims are invisible victims. A lot of them do not report it, and in a place like easten congo, sexual violence is practically normal. Through these posters, I wanted to give them a voice and make them heard.
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PIN Magazine Editorial Design and Art Direction The word “pin” can have different meanings to different people. 1. To a fashion designer, a pin is an accessory 2. To a musician, a pin is used to tighten strings on an instrument 3. To an industrial designer, a pin is used to fasten or hold parts together To me, the word “pin” has my own personal meaning. As a graphic designer and artist, I have always loved to rip out and collect images, words, and stories that I find inspirational and pin it up on my wall in my studio. The goal of this magazine is to make all of the articles “pin worthy.” Pin Magazine aims to be a rich resource of inspiration for all creative minds by promoting the small independent artists with great ideas. The magazine focuses on telling stories through different creative mediums, such as photography, poetry, painting, design, and fiction.
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Remember me Editorial Design and Art Direction “Remember Me” is a feature story with real stories and real people. The story and photo shoot were both conceptualized and art directed by me. It was a great experience working with a commissioned photographer at an actual studio for a real photo shoot. The idea is that we all want to be remembered for something. This is a series of portraits and mini essays of people who want to say something unique about themselves. Each model was instructed to begin the sentence with “Remember Me” and then finish that sentence. The responses varied from “Remember me as the king of the court” to “Remember me for working hard and playing harder.” Art Direction: LIZ CHAN Photographer: HANSEN HANGGODO Models pictured: JAY MILNAMOW, GRACE GUAN, THAO PHAM, MIKE CHAN
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Bad Hair Day Editorial Design and Art Direction “Bad Hair Day� is a feature story where the concept came from an idea I dreamt one night. I was determined to work on a photo-illustration collage for an editorial feature. This whole project was a three-way collaboration; between myself as the creative director, Tae Querney as the illustrator, and Hansen Hanggodo as the photographer. The concept is to show, in a surrealist way, what goes inside the minds of people when they have a bad hair day. A lot of times, we wake up in the morning and let our insecurities change our whole perception of how we look. This story is meant to use imagination and humor in order to take a very relatable and normal situation reinvented into a beautiful and dreamlike piece of art. Art Direction: LIZ CHAN Illustrator: TAE QUERNEY Photographer: HANSEN HANGGODO Models: REBECCA CENTENO, MINA ARROYO, ANNE YONCHA, GABRIELLE FARMER
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goodbye +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ don’t forget to take a card! copy of resume available upon request
Liz chan +1 302 233 3616 liz.g.chan@gmail.com www.liz-chan.com