22/10/2022
Hi 👋 I’m Belle.
Growing up, art, drawing and creativity was life for me. My chosen subjects in senior school were always art, design and ancient history. Ive always had a thirst for knowledge - researching, learning and discovering and needing that freedom to do so. I remember the last day of year 12… It was ‘muck up’ day, the one day where the students can go wild with ‘permission’. While my friends were outside throwing water bombs, flour, toilet paper, and shaking off the shackles of an intense final year of study, I was in the art room finishing off 2 pieces for assessment (well more like 5 since one piece consisted of a large-scale triptych). After they were done, and the final strokes of paint applied, I remember standing back, exhausted, and feeling so proud of what I’d created, and no matter what was going on around me, to hold that vision, backed by the passion to create.
After year 12, I applied for TAFE - a year studying Advertising and Graphic Design. We were required to submit a portfolio of work and sit an illustration test to secure a place. I was accepted… I remember spending hours in the dark room watching images come to life as they developed under that red light. I loved the silence of that space and the opportunity to be alone with my creativity. I then spent the next few years working across various advertising and design agencies, learning the ropes from all angles, and even got to spend a few days as an intern at a big agency at the time (Young & Rubicam), working on their largest account, where we were making ‘storyboards’, yes, hand illustrated storyboards, mapping out a campaign. The change in technology from then to now is INSANE!
In my mid 20’s, I went on to University to complete a Bachelor Degree in Visual Communication (majoring in Graphic Design), where I learnt everything from art history, typography, colour theory, package design, branding, signage, life drawing, and most importantly, communicating messages visually! I then moved from South Australia to Queensland where I applied for my first Graphic Design job in Brisbane. I was told at the interview over 100 people applied and, only 12 were interviewed. I left feeling excited, inspired and wanting to be a part of this company. I received a call advising I’d landed the job, my first design gig - what got me over the line was my tenacity to be part of that team. I worked and learned under an amazing mentor to whom I will always be grateful for. I loved my time working with this particular group of people, and I even won the state award for Graphic Designer of the year during my first year as a designer with this company. I then became the Designer for two stores working across a variety of projects and with multiple clients, including having the responsibility of ‘pre-press’, and anyone in the design and print industry knows that this is the time to catch any mistakes or irregularities in the print job BEFORE it goes to print and the client spends thousands!
For me, creativity means I often have many ideas popcorning away in my brain, and I follow the thread of what I feel inspired by. Inspiration fuels me…. I am also driven to understand why people think the way they do, and am obsessed by psychology, branding psychology and understanding the psyche. I am inspired by those that really believe in their message and believe it can truly make a positive difference in other people’s lives.
Image: Mountain Peek Media
