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It all starts with good communication. And so does my professional life, with the study of communication & public relations (BA) and international business communication (MA) and internships in institutions dealing with international relations (including the European Parliament).
After my studies, I worked as Customer Support Analyst for the digital products of a global market research company, where I observed and empathised with software users and found ways to make their work easier. It was during this position that I realised I wanted to switch to a visual communication role.
This desire did not come out of thin air, I was always a visually-driven person, drawing and painting, and drawn to (pun intended) cinematography and visual arts. Graphic design suddenly felt like an “Aha!” moment, a natural evolution after years of interacting with people using software. I became preoccupied with the best methods to communicate ideas in simple, effective and clear visual ways.
I left the support position, started studying Design and became a freelance Graphic Designer. Shortly after, I joined a small but bold digital marketing agency as collaborator and I worked with small and large clients on Branding, Marketing design, Web and Product design, independently and through the agency. My interests and diverse client needs led me to explore wide design fields, including illustration, icon design and motion.
Four years later I moved to Vienna, Austria (after studying and living in several countries) and joined an Austrian scale-up seeking to digitise European education as Senior Visual Designer. I continued to grow in this role, and widened my skillset with new skills such as design strategy, creative direction, project and people management and inter-departmental collaboration.
When not working, I spend my time wandering through a forest with my partner and our dog to catch a nice view of the surroundings, watching a good movie, listening to the right song to match my mood, cooking something yummy, playing some tennis (on a field or table) or thinking about how I don’t paint enough and should make some time for it.
Short intro
How I work
For me, good design means intention, structure and simplicity. It took me a lot of practice to strip away the unnecessary and make my work stand out, but at the same time feel natural and not over-engineered. I live my life with natural curiosity, tolerance, the joy of discovering new things, respecting nature and all living beings, and I take this with me in my design work. I design with sustainability (not overusing resources), accessibility, and inclusion in mind. I believe in human reasoning and its role in nature — I consider myself to be a humanist — and that influences the way I interact with emerging technologies such as AI (the topic is too complex to go into details here).
While studying design in the early days, I felt closest to Bauhaus and the Swiss Style. I believe in the core principle of these two design schools (form follows function) and I embrace simplicity and effectiveness, striving for a final design with the user and message in the centre. I studied the principles of d.school's Design Thinking and IDEO's approach of Human-Centered Design (HCD) during my IxDF membership, and I consistently apply them in my work.
I often find inspiration in nature, cinematography, photography, architecture, painting and music. The work of great designers is another source of inspiration and influence, be it established names like Milton Glaser, Paula Scher, Saul Bass, Dieter Rams, Jessica Walsh, Ivan Chermayeff, Paul Rand, Leta Sobierajski or young, talented newcomers.
My workflow depends on the type of project I work on, but it usually consists of the following non-linear process:
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The Hearing phase (empathise & define) — focus on research and understanding the needs of the business & users
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The Creation phase (ideate & prototype) — the acquired info leads to creative exploration and takes initial shape under various iterations
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The Delivery phase (test & integrate) — transforming initial designs into final polished & usable materials, plus adapting according to feedback and needs
Hear
Create
Deliver
Skills and tools
I do
Project & Team coordination
Cross-functional collaboration
Creative Direction
Brand identity
Marketing Design
Web Design
User Interface (UI)
User Experience (UX)
Interaction Design
Design Systems
Prototyping
Illustration
Motion Design
Video Editing
I use
Figma
Adobe Photoshop
Adobe Illustrator
Adobe After Effects
Adobe InDesign
WordPress
Wix
AI assistance
Collaborative tools (e.g., Slack, Notion, Miro, Teams, Jira, etc)
Sketching & hand drawing
Whatever else works
I have worked with and for
As the Visual Design Lead on the marketing team, Valentin played a key role in shaping and evolving the visual identity of the FoxEducation brands, and after the merger with Sdui GmbH, those of the entire Sdui Group. His work consistently demonstrated a strong design vision, attention to detail and a deep understanding of how to create visuals that are not only beautiful but also strategically impactful — something I highly appreciated in my roles as CCO and CEO.
Valentin is an exceptionally reliable and diligent colleague who takes a thoughtful, hands-on approach to both the outcome and practical application of his designs.
His calm, friendly, and positive presence makes him a valuable asset to any team or organisation. I look back fondly on the many designs that gained an extra touch of heart, creativity, and fun through his involvement.
We worked together for little over a year, on a few highly challenging projects that perfectly illustrated Valentin's strong work ethic, perseverance and talent backed by research and thoughtfulness. Candid in sharing and receiving feedback, Valentin always paid attention to details of extreme importance in a service-based business—being on time, thorough and receptive.
Anna Maria Radu
Founder and PR Manager
Digitales Agency
We have been working with great pleasure and to full satisfaction with Valentin. He is able to transform words and thoughts from a customer into designs that are intelligent, speak out and have content.
He works in a very accurate and structured manner and is able to deliver in time and keep promises.
Floor Van Zuidam
Business Development
La Marzocco Austria
