Ade is an Art Director, Designer, and Letterer based in Chicago, IL. He has a wonderful job of using his hands to blend the beautiful with the practical. Ade does more than just push pixels; he get to take ideas and turn them into something physical.
I was born in a small town in southern Virginia but moved to North Carolina when I was a kid. I grew up in Asheville, NC and eventually moved to Charlotte, NC to attend college.
I didn’t have a background in art/design growing up. I originally went to school for Civil Engineering before eventually deciding that wasn’t something I wanted to pursue anymore. I sort of stumbled into an art class in college and decided that I liked it and I guess the rest is history.
My work covers a pretty wide range of things, but generally speaking, I work with type. I try to introduce custom type and lettering into everything I do, no matter the medium.
I would say that the accomplishment that I am most proud to date is being featured in Print Magazine as one of their 2017 New Visual Artists. It was an incredible honor to have my work recognized by such a prestigious publication.
I think it’s probably the struggle that so many of us have as creatives, my battle with doubting myself. It’s not easily overcome, but with time and a little patience, you get better at confronting it.
I’m not sure if it’s unique, but I am just myself. To me, there’s a lot of value in having your personality shine through your work, your website, and your social media profiles. I want every potential client to feel like they know me before they even speak to me.
I’m not sure what to say other than it’s been my own. I don’t know what it’s like to be a white designer and I don’t know what it’s like to have all your idols look like you. I just know how great it feels to see another designer of color doing work at a high level in design.
My single biggest motivator will always be any desire to gain the respect and admiration of my peers in design.
Just being able to create things that I truly love. There’s something simply amazing about seeing that vision you’ve had in your head for so long turn into something that’s real and you can touch.
Better teamwork. Let’s vouch for each other. Let’s recommend each other. Let’s encourage each other. We’re all in it together and we have to fight for one another.
Oh man, too many things to count. I do a lot of self-initiated things on top of my normal client work, so the list is always long. Right now, I’m really just working on finding ways to empower and uplift others through the things I design. Not fully sure what the end result looks like yet, but I’m working on it.