From an unemployed graduate in Siberia to an independent designer in New York: a (somewhat) critical examination

Born and raised in Novosibirsk, Russia, I always knew I was interested in typography. I never met anyone who did what I wanted to do for a living before deciding on that, but I’d spend hours looking at letters. At 18, when I was able to get my hands on a stolen copy of the Helvetica movie, I watched it on repeat, and made my friends watch it with me for my birthday. Fast forward to 24, and I was at a Helvetica screening in New York, sitting next to the very designers featured in it. How did that happen?! I will show the progression in my work, personal projects, assignments, and presentations from internships I was rejected from and the jobs I got; things I learned the easy way and the hard way. I do not claim my path to be a reflection of my hard work or any such nonsense; there were lots of lucky accidents, implicit bias, and positive stereotypes favoring me, a white American-passing woman, along the way. Yes, I can fight a bear. But I design instead. My hope is that my presentation will be inspiring and offer some practical insights on how to better your work with type. I know I always try.