Who I Am
I have lived on 3.5 continents, born in Taiwan, grew up on the Big Island of Hawaii, lived and worked in Stockholm, Sweden, and now live in the heart of Silicon Valley in Northern California.
I speak a few languages, not perfect, but since young I’ve understood the implications of “communication” that incorporates not only words, drawings, sound and images, but emotions, expressions, body-language, gestures, and the many cultural factors that make us human.
I grew up in Hilo where both of my parents were professional artists. My father, Linus Chao, was a famous fine artist and a pioneer in multi-media. He is considered to be the Father of Animation for Taiwan after being trained at Walt Disney and Hanna-Barbera as an Animator working on classics such as Mary Poppins, Flintstones and Jetson. My mother, Jane Chao, is also a well-known artist specializing in Fine Art, creating her own unique and intricate styles in water color on silk and fine pencil drawings.
What Matters to Me as a Designer
In communications design, an insightful understanding in how people Receive, Retain and Recall information is critical in how we strategize during the ideation and design process and equally important in the execution and delivery of the design.
To me these three R’s (Receive, Retain and Recall) are the most important objectives in Communications Design, that help solve communication and understanding needs.
Who, What, Where Influenced me as a Designer
I learned from my father that a key difference between Design and Art is that Design solves problems, whether it is communications design, interior design, time-based design, logistics design, and way finding design, such as the London Underground Map design by Harry Beck. What I learned from my mother is to fine hone your craft and skills diligently and have a purpose in mind. And what I learned from both parents is to be brave and courageous to learn new ideas and skills, take on new challenges, have a vision (if not then create one) and follow through on your purpose and promise.
I first became aware of the field of “Information Design” when I lived in Stockholm, Sweden, when I joined a list-group in Europe. What struck me most being new to this field, was how often I saw people in UK often referred to Harry Beck and the London Underground Map as a reference point for good Information Design. Soon, the Internet and Web Design exploded and I was hooked. I took an Information Design self-study research trip to London, UK, and discovered the London. Transport Museum that housed Harry Beck’s original design of the London Underground Map.
At same time, I’d also discovered Adobe’s AfterEffects after being invited to an introductory session at Adobe’s San Jose HQ. After I saw on a giant video wall monitor the many layers of AfterEffect’s UI, I shook…all the way home. This was the beginning of my Rich Digital Media design that incorporated all my passion and fascinations from Information Design, Visual Design, Web Design, Motion Graphics Design, Digital Video Editing,