/ˈkänˌsept/: 15 years of Concept Design
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Marketing — Concept Design
In 2019, I celebrated the 15th anniversary of my career as a designer by creating a personal promotional project titled /ˈkänˌsept/ — a body of work that reflects a decade and a half of Concept Design exploration. Spanning numerous ideas developed between 2004 and 2019, the project presented a curated selection of original concepts that shaped my creative journey. It also included work for NubyTech, a legendary small video game accessories company where I took my first professional steps. The result is both a portfolio of concepts and a physical artifact that embodies my passion for idea generation and visual storytelling.
Overview — The vision for /ˈkänˌsept/ was to share a curated selection of ideas imagined over 15 years in a way that celebrates both process and creativity. The project takes the form of swatch books featuring fifteen concepts developed between 2004 and 2019, showcasing a broad range of styles, themes, and design directions. An additional page highlights early work for NubyTech, the company where I began my design career and first explored Concept Design. The aim was not just to present finished visuals but to show how concept design meaningfully contributes to a designer’s growth and evolving creative language over time.
Design Approach — My vision for /ˈkänˌsept/ was rooted in celebrating Concept Design itself — not just as finished visuals but as a body of ideas that trace my evolution as a design professional. For more than a decade, concept design served as a foundation of my practice, continually engaging with the other disciplines that define my work — Graphic Design and Creative Design. For /ˈkänˌsept/, I selected works that demonstrate diverse thinking, range, and adaptability. The intention was to show the scope of my conceptual work — from early explorations to more refined pieces, and from initial ideas to concepts that ultimately made it into production.
Visual Development — The centerpiece of /ˈkänˌsept/ is its presentation as a tangible object — the swatch books themselves. Each page was crafted not only to showcase the selected concepts but also to engage physically with the viewer. A cutout on every page aligns to form a shape resembling a letter from the Tato logotype, reinforcing the personal nature of the project. Alongside the physical mockup, the project was also realized through 3D renderings that highlight composition, texture, and visual hierarchy. This dual presentation — as both a carefully made object and a digital artifact — underscored the idea that Concept Design exists as both idea and form.
Outcome — /ˈkänˌsept/ resulted in a cohesive and expressive showcase of Concept Design as a foundational creative discipline. Completed in February 2019 after two weeks of focused work, the project marked an important milestone in my career, demonstrating how early ideas develop and eventually shape broader design outcomes. Presented in a promotional format, it invited peers and collaborators to engage with the variety of concepts that shaped my practice over fifteen years. The final product — existing as both physical mockup and 3D model — stands as a testament to the power of Concept Design and highlights the significance of idea generation in the larger design process.
Concept Design was a defining part of my career for over a decade, and I wanted to showcase the work I’m most proud of in a format that felt intentional, crafted, and promotional.
