We recently connected with Ellis Zhixuan Yu and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Ellis Zhixuan thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

I started my creative journey even before learning how to write. As the only art kid in the family, I was granted the freedom to explore the world of art and design without any limitations. Since kindergarten, I have joined various art classes to manifest the foundations of painting but later discovered my true passion was actually design. During high school, after several years of classical painting training, I came to realize how much I loved putting analytic and systematic thinking into the creative field, and graphic design was the one discipline that offered all the puzzles I was eager to piece together.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I am Ellis Zhixuan Yu, a multidisciplinary graphic designer based in NYC.

I was always the “art kid” among my peers when growing up, always dreaming about becoming an artist before discovering the beauty of graphic design. Being a cross-cultural designer, one of my work’s main focuses is investigating how design, especially typography, can deliver different voices in different cultures. I believe that design is not just a form of decoration but a container for messages.

With several years of training in classical drawing as well as holding both a BA and an MFA in graphic design, I now have a comprehensive work spectrum spanning from illustration, typography, and brand identity design, to creative coding and multi-media projects. My past work includes WeChat emoji designs that received over 20,0000 downloads, creating posters for award-winning independent young directors, and various projects that gained recognition from Young Ones ADC, Graphis, D&AD, and Communication Arts.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

As someone with her heart for modern graphic design, I accidentally started my creative journey in the classical segment filled with illustrations and paintings. Though they benefited my visual skills, I was limited in the scope of work I could do with my skills, not knowing enough about the great projects that leaned more towards contemporary design than illustrations during my undergrad years. It was always about adding something new to the existing scope but not knowing when to stop. I got the opportunity to delve into contemporary graphic design and was able to focus on typography, brand identity, and strategic thinking. I learned that it is more about finding balance instead of pouring everything.
Although now I classified myself as a graphic designer, my illustration skills still come in handy when approaching different projects, with the mindset of keeping them balanced.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

Before graduating from Shenzhen University, I had already started my career as an art teacher, with several years of experience working with children in art education. I was also working as a graphic designer and illustrator in a Shenzhen-based brand studio that created the identity for tech startups, including Solbit and Line Dot. Besides that, as an independent designer, I was always getting commissions, such as creating poster designs and WeChat emoji designs for clients from different fields. I could have just started from there and launched a successful career, but during my junior year of college, I decided to further my study in graphic design in the States to explore my full potential. It was not easy, starting a career almost from the begging in another country and a different culture. Still, I made it with award-recognized projects and work experiences at renowned studios, including Superunion, Gretel, and 2×4. I now have an amazing list of projects and clients in my portfolio, and much much more to come in my future career.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://ellisyu.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yuuuuuzx/
• Linkedin: http://linkedin.com/in/ellis-zhixuan-yu