My design career began in late 1999 when I volunteered as the designer for a student-run zine at the Faculty of Journalism at St. Petersburg University, where I was studying at the time. The experience led me choose periodical design and management for my degree specialization. The experience also helped me get a position at Sankt Petersburgische Zeitung, a bimonthly newspaper for German expats living in St. Petersburg. The periodical format impressed me with its rigidness: strict guidelines allowed for very little variation, but it was this creativity within constraints that attracted me to the trade.

Upon graduating I moved to New York City and became a graphic designer at the Architect’s Newspaper, a full-color bimonthly publication. Having become an expert in Quark Xpress I was eager to move to the next frontiers, so I started learning HTML and CSS, primarily to redesign the newspaper’s outdated website. Looking for new opportunities, I began freelancing for large corporations, gaining a lot of new experience in the process. This helped me get a permanent position at SS+K, a creative marketing and advertising agency. The work allowed me to master the big three of the Adobe Creative Suite but unfortunately, then the 2008 financial crisis occurred.

Looking for a new job amidst a severe hire freeze, I came across an online creative marketplace platform. I joined it and gradually grew my network of contacts and built a versatile portfolio. Remote freelancing often implies that I am the sole decision maker, granting me the roles from creative director to production artist all at once. This practice gave me yet another kind of experience, a new set of skills, and better discipline.

Nowadays, I continue freelancing remotely, but as I currently live in London, I am back to working on-site as well. Having an already wide range of clients, companies, projects and jobs in my curriculum vitae, I am keen to continue navigating through the diverse seas of my profession.