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I’m Bart Kowalski…
A Polish-born, Aussie-raised graphic designer currently based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Bartkowalski.com is my little corner of the internet — a place to store my digital thoughts and creations. On this page, you can find out about me, my past, and my present. My future? Well, I guess we’ll see ;)
Past
My career to date has had me working in a handful of design agencies, as well as a 7-year stretch as a freelance designer, primarily in print. My working experience in design totals 11 years.
Until recently, I was Senior Designer at Six Degrees Digital, a boutique design agency in Richmond, Victoria, Australia. The agency’s projects were more or less evenly split between print and online, and it was here where I honed my skills in designing for the online medium.
Present
Since relocating to Malaysia, I stayed on at Six Degrees Digital in a senior role, working remotely on higher-level design and conceptual creative. Although this situation was good for me, I decided in June 2010 to end my contract, and take some time out from client work. This, as it turns out, is a good thing :)
During the next two years, I’ll be working on furthering my creative and conceptual skills by undertaking a mixture of pro-bono and personal design work, as well as other pursuits such as photography, film-making, and creative experimentation. As well as this, I’m actively researching the theory and practical application of User Experience (UX) and User Interface (UI) design. I’m extremely interested in these areas — how and why we behave as we do when viewing and interacting with websites and other online systems.
Whilst on sabbatical, I’m open to new and exciting design projects. If you are in need of an experienced creative or conceptual designer, either for a print or online project, or both, please take a look at my work. If you think I will be good for your project, get in contact.
Philosophy
Philosophy in design — Simplicity. Idea.
Good, effective design is based on simple ideas, and simple execution. Graphic design, whether it be a business card, poster, or a brochure of 40 pages, is most easily interpreted and quickly absorbed when information is presented in a clean and simple way. This is the basis of my approach to design. Of course, not all effective design is visually clean and simple… but often the idea behind a seemingly complex piece of design is as simple as they come.
Philosophy in music — Simplicity. Emotion.
Music and Design are of equal importance in my life. Music that inspires me to make music, will nearly always draw me in via an emotion. This may simply be a rhythm at a certain speed, or a long and layered orchestral piece that triggers one or more memories or emotions. It is the evocation of a response that fascinates me, and sometimes it pops up in the most unexpected songs.
Philosophy in general — Simplicity. Honesty.
You get what you pay for. This, of course, does not solely relate to money. It relates to my approach to quoting and working for a client. It relates to my way of going through and enjoying my life. It’s a way of thinking that I believe in.
Contact me
Please contact me if you have a question about my work, website, or anything else really.
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