Karen Orilla

Art Director/Senior Designer

 

I support businesses in their interactions with clients and customers with strategically meaningful print and digital design solutions for event, marketing and advertising campaigns — including information graphics. Disciplined to deliver. On time. On target. On brand.

Sometimes it takes just a slight design nudge in the right direction. Sometimes it takes a much more thoughtful approach to ensure that a project hits its intended mark. These are the things that I enjoy as a designer. With a combination of creativity, practicality, and an eye towards an employer’s or a client’s success,

I‘m an Art Director and Senior Designer from Southern California who enjoys a challenge – whether large or small – to solve creatively.

 

My experiences range from managing a Fortune 50 corporate brand and creative team, to creating identities for start-ups and designing small one-off projects. And more in between.

 

From UnitedHealthcare E&I The Creative Team Blog‘s Creative Chat series:

 

Is there an overlap between “professional Karen” and “off-the-clock Karen”?

I can be pretty tenacious about accomplishing a task both in and out of the professional environment, and I can get pretty creative and resourceful about maneuvering to getting that task done.

 

What got you into this line of work?

I actually started out with the goal of being a fine artist. I took all sorts of art classes – from drawing to watercolor painting, stained glass to sculpture – with that in mind. But the direction to go into Communication Design was inspired by an instructor from Fullerton College. I took these Communication Design classes out of a whim and was invigorated by the whole process of problem-solving. After a few semesters of study with this instructor, he directed me to continue my education at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, CA, where I received a partial scholarship and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Graphic Design and Packaging with honors.

 

What was the last ad/visual communication that made you think, ARRRGH, I wish I did that?

The work of Saul Bass still makes me do that. There’s no one quite like him. He was a master of minimalist symbolic design. There’s something to be said about “less is more.” There is power to an uncluttered, singular and compelling idea.

 

What do you do when you need to be extra creative/enhance your creativity?

I need quiet and meditation time. Mornings are especially a good time for thinking through design challenges. Sometimes that moment even happens between sleeping and waking.

 

What do you do when you need to give your brain a break and cleanse your mental palette?

Find something tactile to do and work with my hands. Sometimes even the humble task of doing household chores gives me a mental break and helps me reset. Sitting outside and watching the sky works, too. But the one thing that I enjoy most to give myself a mental break is to travel, see the world from a different point-of-view and just leave everyday things behind.

 

 

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