born: Los Angeles, CA, USA
resides: Tokyo, Japan
travel: USA, Japan, Switzerland, United Kingdom
education:
MFA 2D Design, Cranbrook Academy of Art, Bloomfield Hills, MI, USA
BFA Graphic+Packaging Design, Art Center College of Design, Pasadena, CA, USA
also studied at Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA, and Art Center Europe, La-Tour-de-Peilz, Switzerland
employment:
Art Director/Designer, Weiden+Kennedy, Tokyo, Japan
Art Director/Design Consultant/Lecturer, Razorfish, London, UK
Instructor, College for Creative Studies, Detroit, MI, USA
Art Director/Designer, Imaginary Forces, Hollywood, CA, USA
Art Director, Weiden+Kennedy, Portland, OR, USA
Graphic Designer, Sapient [formerly Studio Archetype], San Francisco, CA, USA
Graphic Designer, Norfolk Southern Corporation, Norfolk, VA, USA
My personal interests in civilisation, anthropology, personal/cultural identity and visual/cultural colonialism prompted my relocation to Tokyo. I had been working in both the US and Europe for the last 6 years, and felt the need to contribute to the culture I came from.
Since I am Filipino-American, I wanted to create work that is for Asian people. It's a natural thing. I traveled China/Asia for 3.5 months after Cranbrook, and grew more curious about its dynamic beauty and chaos. China at one point was one of the most powerful empires that ever existed; today it is a "counterfeit culture", taking ideas from elsewhere and re-making it cheaper and more accessible.
The idea of creating a brand in China is somewhat of an oxymoron. How can you build a brand such as Nike, when people cannot afford it and can get it for 1/8 the price? With Shanghai's re-awakening, Asia seems more relevant for me to create for. I want to help rebuild this side of the world.
One side of my profession explores modern commercial culture, speed and futurism, youth culture, while the personal side explores anthropological culture, indigenous, primitive and social culture. It's a contrast between futurism and history.