Colosoul Chats with: Leeanne!

One of our amazing Colosoul members, Leeanne, has recently changed her role at Colosoul. Read about her experience so far and what she has planned for the future!

What were you doing at Colosoul before?

I started out at Colosoul as an event assistant and then worked my way to being the co-ordinator of Foxfeet, which is the fashion agency run under Colosoul to support emerging fashion designers.

What are you doing now?

 Now I am the assistant creative director of POP Creative, which is the design and marketing agency run under the Colosoul Group. I run a small team of graphic designers, mentor designers who have little to no prior experience in design and work on client projects.

How did you know you wanted to be a graphic designer? Is it something you’ve always been interested in?

I never thought about being a graphic designer, but I always knew that I would go down a creative career pathway. When I started uni at Curtin I did one year of the Design course, before transferring to Interior Architecture, which I graduated from with honours. In the Design course we were taught how to use each of the main design programs, but I couldn’t pick up on it as fast as the others and this left me unmotivated and discouraged. I only used the programs again at a very basic level throughout my 4 years of Interior Architecture and relied on my traditional hand drawing skills. It was only when I started volunteering at Colosoul that I started to teach myself how to use the programs by watching youtube videos. I took my hand drawing skills to the next level by digitalising it. I picked up on things much quicker, and I became very determined to better myself and get my skills up to industry standards. Now when I think back to my first year of uni I wonder why things did not seem as simple as they are for me now. 

What are the biggest struggles you’ve experienced so far in the graphic design industry?

The creative industry is so competitive, in saying so there are many other jobs that are just as competitive as well. When you are in a creative field however, your work is always open to a thousand opinions. You are pretty much putting yourself on display for the whole world to see. We are taught that when you are looking at an art piece there is no right or wrong. But then that certain style or execution may not appeal to everyone’s tastes either. What makes a good design? What makes it bad? These are all questions that I am still asking myself…it is quite the pickle. Its hard to appeal to everyone, and the minority that you do appeal to may not give you the result you are after. Finding work experience and a job in Perth is extremely difficult. There are more designers than there are available job positions. There are always designers who have much more experience than myself, and who are more technically skilled, as I did not study graphic design. Exposure is another big struggle. Getting your name/brand out there is very difficult and this can take years or with one hit of pure luck.

What advice do you have for people wanting to enter the industry?

 Work hard! Experiment and find your own style. Find what you are good at and stick with it, and if it’s something you are passionate about it wont even feel like work. When you get lost in what you do, forget what time it is and can’t even remember if you ate that day then you know you have fallen in love with your ‘work’.

What are your plans for the future?

I will continue to work hard until I see my brand being posted everywhere. See strangers walk by with my design on their clothes, bags or phone case. Have others talking about me and seeing my name appear in magazines. Looking far into the future I want to hopefully run my own firm under my brand, firstly in Perth and then perhaps a few over east!

Colosoul Chats With: Ashvin!

One of our amazing Colosoul volunteers Ashvin is moving on in his career and is sadly leaving the Colosoul group :(

Have a read about his time here and what he has enjoyed most!

What was your role at Colosoul when you first started?

I was involved in attaining sponsorships and grants for events such as the charity ball.

What did your role turn into?

Afterwards I was the sole person running social media management and became the team leader.

Why did you choose to work in social media management instead?

Because social media management was a passion of mine

What was an average day at Colosoul like for you?

A typical day is usually reviewing what’s coming up that week, connecting and communicating with other departments with what they are doing and what needs to be done and of course going out to lunch with everyone

What are your plans now you’re leaving?

I want to get more involved with small business social media marketing

What was your favourite thing about working at Colosoul, and what will you take away from this experience?

My favourite thing is definitely the people I’ve met and worked with, and I’m taking away the value of never giving up no matter what.

Any final thoughts?

I definitely encourage people to stick it out through the good and bad times, just work hard and persist and it’ll all pay off in the end – its just a matter of time.

Amanda loves working at Colosoul because...

She gets to wear comfy shoes to work!

Meet Shima

Hey my name is Shima. I am an Architect, and it has been only 3 months that I have joined Colosoul Group as a graphic designer. Working at Colosoul gives me the opportunity to Keep in touch with creative individuals, meet with like-minded people to interact with and discus views, exchange ideas, learn new things and participate in different events. Moreover, being part of a creative community gives me the chance to use my experience in inspiring environment while I am looking for a professional career.

Meet Rihannon

Hi! I guess this is the part where I tell you my name is Rhiannon, I like candle lit dinners and long walks on the beach…. Just kidding! I started at Colosoul in June 2015 as the graphic designer for Teensoul – our teen magazine – and as of October 2015 I’ve been managing Colosoul’s latest endeavour, La Mods Modelling Agency. Being the youngest of Colosoul’s team leaders at 17 is a really interesting experience; I’m almost one of our newer staff members so every day brings a lesson along with it. 

Pursuing a career in the design industry is definitely a dream of mine and this year marks my first year at university, where I’ll be studying Graphic Design. I studied graphic design all through high school but I had always planned on studying a science pathway. Year 11 really opened my eyes to the graphic industry and I don’t think I could be happier. Colosoul has provided me with an environment of real industry experience and mentorship that is invaluable to my learning and development within the industry. 

Colosoul is like my second family and I don’t know where I would be without it.

Meet Alanah

Hey my name is Alanah Yukich and I came to The Colosoul group after finishing my final year at high school. Like many others within my year, the future was unknown for us, not knowing what we wanted to do with our lives. I knew I wanted to get a head start in life but not knowing what I wanted to do became difficult to do so. 
Colosoul has given me the opportunity to challenge and try new opportunities working with other young dedicated people like myself through the events department. I have also been given the greatest opportunity to do what I have always wanted to do, model, and become the face of Foxfeet. I cannot thank Colosoul enough for the endless challenges I face and the amazing people that I have met along the way, it has really given me the right start to life being able to express myself through the young people and arts.

Introducing: Monica

Helloooo, my name is Monica! It has only been a few weeks since I joined Colosoul and my experience so far has been great. I am a graphic designer in the POP creative team and currently finishing my last year at Curtin University; majoring in Creative Advertising and Graphic Design. Aiming to pursue a career in the design field is definitely tough when you have no experience and only working at a retail job. I decided to give myself a head start, learning from others and getting involved in the work that we do in the office.

I have met a lot of amazing individuals within my short period of time at Colosoul and actually have been motivated to get up on Monday mornings to come in and do what I love most. I absolutely enjoy the casual environment, the lunch dates and of course, working with the people. It feels great being part of a creative community that shares the same interest and passion as I do, and I am definitely excited to see what I'll achieve in the next year as part of this team.