2 Shillington Winners of TDK Awards ’18

Huge congratulations to our two Shillington winners of the TDK ’18 Awards! The competition was tough this year, with 1000+ entries from 46 countries—and only 30 winners. Part-time New York graduate Jennifer Yoo was selected by Jessica Walsh of Sagmeister & Walsh, and part-time London graduate Justyna Procak was selected by Jupio Ishiyama of Studio A.

The Design Kids invited 10 top industry leaders to judge. They were told to “pretend they were hiring for a junior role and to pick 3 people they would get in for an interview based on all the applications”. The judges were chosen on their high industry involvement and incredible standard of work. More than half of them have been involved in teaching design in some capacity and understand student limitations, but also know the standard and what to look for. Thanks again to our judges: Jessica Walsh, Sagmeister & Walsh (New York City), Oliver Siegenthaler, Siegenthaler & Co (Bogota), Jupio Ishiyama, Studio A – Interbrand (Lima), Chris Cooper, Studio Band (Adelaide), Leta Sobierajski & Wade Jeffree (New York City), Jesper Bange, Bond (Helsinki), Daniela Garza, Anagrama (Mexico City), Jeremy Wortsman, The Jacky Winter Group (Melbourne), Caroline Bagley and Sohee Kim, COLLINS (San Francisco), Toby Johnston, Shift (Singapore & Hong Kong).

Read on to meet our winners and hear their stories!

Jennifer Yoo, Shillington New York Part-Time Graduate

Jessica Walsh’s pick: “Unexpected, fun and experimental, I love how different each project was. The colour palette of the ‘Lovely SPAM’ project, the illustrations, copy writing and mystical quality to ‘Fete de la Foret’, a luxury pet brand, to the playful experimental typography for ‘KANPAI!’, a drink delivery service. Jennifer’s folio is well executed, and she shows off each brand nicely without over doing it. Well done.”

Unexpected, fun and experimental, I love how different each project was.
—Jessica Walsh on Jennifer Yoo

How does it feel that Jessica Walsh selected you as a winner of the TDK Awards ’18?

It feels pretty surreal to be selected by Jessica Walsh. I’m still in a state of disbelief that her eyes looked at my portfolio!

Could you share the story/process behind one of your award-winning Shillington briefs?

‘KANPAI’, an alcohol delivery service, was a huge struggle for me in the early stages, I wasn’t happy (and neither were my teachers) with any of my revisions. Towards portfolio time I quickly created some coasters and the whole brand identity just came together from those coasters!

Before Shillington you had more than a decade of experience in fashion publishing. Why did you decide to study design part-time?

Towards the latter end of my career in fashion publishing I found I didn’t have that “passion for fashion” as much as my peers. I recalled my bygone college years staying up all night working on ‘Graphic Design 101” projects, x-acto knifing paper lines and circles and rubber cementing them to paper. I remember strangely enjoying the process way more than what’s normal and decided to make the leap to change my career.

Why did you choose Shillington?

I researched a lot of schools and read a ton of reviews and found Shillington to be the best option for me.

What was your full-time job while studying at Shillington? How did you find juggling everything?

During my time at Shillington I freelanced part time as a photographer/prop stylist so I was fortunate enough to have time to dedicate to my projects. I REALLY respect my classmates who were working full time and studying.

How has your career changed since graduating from Shillington?

It’s only been two months since I graduated, and my life has changed drastically!

I started freelancing full time as a designer for a beauty company a month after graduation. I am completely overwhelmed but I am learning so much and it feels great to put the skills I learned at Shillington to use.

Where do you find creative inspiration?

PINTEREST. All kidding aside, it’s hard to avoid because the masses are constantly uploading images. Old posters, Behance, instagram, TYPEWOLF (so much Typewolf), old movies, my commute to work, artists, art, old storefronts, restaurants, traveling, other cultures, books, podcasts, music, album covers, my friends, my family, my husband, everywhere!

Anything else you’d like to share?

Hierarchy! Hierarchy! Hierarchy! Is a mantra that’s stuck with me through teacher critiques in class.

Check out Jennifer Yoo’s website for more.

Justyna Procak, Shillington London Part-Time Graduate

Jupio Ishiyama’s pick: “First, she talks about Mad Men, twice, in the first page. Second, she has a talent to say things in a way that you feel connected. I really like how she mixed her design skills with some funny and clever messages. Very playful and conceptual at the same time. Third, the fact that she wants to focus her role as a designer in a social movement is really great.”

Very playful and conceptual at the same time.
—Jupio on Justyna’s Portfolio

How does it feel that you were selected as a winner of the TDK Awards ’18?

Winning the award was a really incredible experience. It means a lot that some industry superstars appreciate my work and creativity. It makes me more confident not only as a designer but also as a person.

Could you share the story/process behind one of your award-winning Shillington briefs?

One of my favourite projects was to create a campaign to change the perception of an organization with an image problem. I chose fencing. During the research, I found out that fencing’s legacy gave it a reputation of being gentlemanly, but even while you may be polite, shaking hands and saluting your opponent, you are aggressive during competition. The participants scream a lot and feel like a badass. I wanted to break the stereotypes by using a rebellious style and contrasting it with bright colours, bold typography and wicky tone of voice.

Before Shillington, you received a bachelor’s degree in Sociology and studied photography. Why did you want to go back to study design?

I always wanted to work in a creative industry but it was not easy to make a decision on exactly what I wanted to do. I chose Sociology because it gave me a wide knowledge of society and made me even more curious.

Photography has always been my passion, but I was not feeling confident enough to start it as a professional career. As a graphic designer, I can combine all my skills in one place—from research to art directing and creative problem-solving.

Why did you choose Shillington?

After moving to London I was trying to find a way to combine my skills and become more confident as a creative. I was thinking about studying for a Masters degree. But every day going to work I saw a poster for Shillington on the Tube. Finally, I ended up going to an Info Session. After 30 minutes I knew that this was exactly what I wanted to do.

I left the Shillington Info Session feeling like I had just sat an exam and knew all the answers.

What was your full-time job while studying at Shillington? How did you find juggling everything?

I was working as a department manager at one of the big stores in Oxford Circus. It pretty tough sometimes with 14 hour days, starting work at 7 am and finishing Shillington at 9 pm. But I had enough motivation and focus on what I wanted to achieve which allowed me to finish. I found it a good experience to push myself to achieve my goals.

How has your career changed since graduating from Shillington? 

After graduating I knew that I wanted to work in branding where I would be able to experience different projects and try to define my own style. I created a list of the places that I would like to work and I got my internship at Otherway which was one of the studios on the list. After 8 weeks I was offered a Junior Graphic Designer position.

It took me almost 2 months to overcome the pressure that I put on myself about working in my dream job at Otherway. Winning the award has helped me in this process.

Otherway has a great working environment and other Shillington graduates work there. It’s full of bold and creative personalities. Straight away I could work on various projects for from small startups to big companies.

Where do you find creative inspiration?

I really enjoy being present and being offline. So instead of just going to websites like Pinterest, I like to go around the city and explore. I like to observe how design interacts with urban space. I’m always looking for new signs and posters, collect some leaflets, or take some photos.

Anything else you’d like to share? 

Thanks to my teachers Jen and Emma I gained a lot of confidence during the course. I’m so grateful for their support. I was not afraid to push briefs even further.
The hardest part was to create my own branding. It was a really frustrating process. And now I understand it is okay to not know what is your style. It’s a life process full of changes.

But I’m completely sure that this is the work that I want to do.

Check out Justyna Procak’s website and Instagram for more.

Huge congratulations again to Jennifer and Justyna! If you’d like to study design and win awards like this, check out our course in New York, London, Manchester, Sydney, Melbourne or Brisbane –> www.shillingtoneducation.com