About

Sydney-based Art Director, Illustrator and Designer from the UK with over six years’ experience in advertising.

Alex standing against red wall mural

Nice to meet you! 👋

As a Senior Art Director with nine years’ experience in creative advertising, I’ve been fortunate enough to work with clients across multiple industries – from fashion to finance, entertainment to government, and fast-food to healthcare.

My work has won awards in effectiveness, multicultural communication, and long-term brand success, and picked up a bit of press (while I made some of my own).

I’ve designed fried-chicken-adorned Christmas Jumpers for Aussie pets (and their owners), built a CGI Lion to launch a bank’s health insurance, filmed Pride ads with drag queens smashing chicken to RuPaul, made beautiful music together with a rock band (and a creepy reindeer), published anti-sexism ads in beauty magazines, put on a food festival to bring live music back to a locked-down city, put domestic violence on everyone’s lips, illustrated wall murals that have become a ‘must-see’ for tourists, and crafted a logo that’s out of this world – literally.

And that’s just the stuff that got made.

Wanna hear more about what’s ticking away in my little noggin?
Let’s chat.

 

Some brands I’ve worked with


My experience

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Ogilvy, Sydney
Nov 2016 – Present

Concepting and designing across print and digital channels, my role as a Senior Art Director – previously Art Director, and Designer prior to then – has allowed me to work on a wide variety of through-the-line campaigns, involving TV ads, illustrated wall murals, out-of-homes, digital display and web design, social media assets, point-of-sale signage, editorial, printed direct-marketing, eDMs, as well as logo and lockup design. Clients thus far have been across multiple industries including food and beverage (KFC, Coca-Cola, Nestlé, Primo, Uncle Tobys, Lion Craft Beer, Barista Bros), financial and business services (American Express, Actuaries Institute, ING, CPA Australia), technology (Optus, IBM, Philips), retail (Westfield), publishing (Marie Claire), healthcare (QV, Lung Foundation Australia), education (University of Queensland), and government (The Australian Space Agency, Department of Health, Department of Communities & Justice, Transport NSW, The Australian Passport Office).

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ADMA Creative School, Sydney
Aug 2017– Oct 2017

Graduated from a 10-week intensive course learning about idea generation, art direction, copywriting, and advertising across various channels.

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Spinnaker, London
Jan 2016 – Jul 2016

Working on promotional campaigns for such clients as Sony Pictures (Ghostbusters, The Angry Birds Movie, Grimsby, The Shallows), HiPP Organic baby products, Bord Bia Irish Beef and It’s A Penalty charity, my role as Designer involved collaborating with other members of the team in order to consistently ensure a high standard of work and successfully promote brands through print and digital approaches, from books and direct mail pieces to motion graphics, web design and social media content.

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Them, London
Aug 2014 – Jan 2016

Working on innovative marketing campaigns for such clients as Johnson & Johnson, Wilkinson Sword, NHS, Mitchells & Butlers, and Bupa, my responsibilities as a Junior Designer involved delivering creative solutions to clients across print and screen-based mediums.

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The University of the West of England, Bristol
2011 – 2014
Awarded 2:1

Graduated a three-year program with Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Graphic Design.

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The Coffee Art Project
2014
Exhibited at Old Truman Brewery, London
Published in This & That Collective Magazine

Illustration work exhibited in Brick Lane at the London Coffee Festival as part of UK Coffee Week. The work was auctioned off with proceeds going to the Project Waterfall charity organisation.

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Sights and Sounds, Taiwan International Student Design Competition
2013
Awarded Honourable Mention
Exhibited at Eslite Building, Taipei

Placing in the Top 10 amongst over 3800 entries, my submission was the first entry from the University of the West of England to be awarded in the prestigious student design competition.

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National Taiwan Normal University, Taipei
2013

Graduated an International Exchange program in Visual Communication, Illustration and Film Music Technology Production.

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University of the Creative Arts, Epsom
2011
Awarded Merit

Graduated with Foundation Diploma in Art & Design, specialising in Graphic Design and Illustration.


What they say

Alex is a rare breed of art director.

One who truly cares about the work from start to finish. One that can bring his ideas to life with his skills “on the tools” whether that be Adobe CS or a pencil in hand. One that has the patience and persistence with clients to ensure the best work gets made. And one that listens, shares, thinks, adapts and genuinely considers the team around him.

In short, he’s a gun. An asset to any creative department as a professional and a person.
— Chris Little | Group Creative Director, Ogilvy Australia
Things I like about Alex.

He’s passionate about his craft and is really driven to improve himself. I love that he thinks deeply about the ‘why’ of what he’s doing and always has a rationale for the choices he’s made. But, he’s not wedded to his decisions and listens carefully to feedback and then willingly explores how he can make the work better.

He’s also an excellent communicator and is brilliant at rallying people together to make complex projects come together smoothly. Beyond all that, what I like most about Alex is that he’s still got loads of potential to develop into an even better creative. It’s going to be exciting to see where he goes!
— Gavin McLeod | Executive Creative Director, Ogilvy Australia
What a great Art Director. Alex had a great vision on the ‘Small Business. Big Goals.’ campaign.

His art direction was detailed and succinct. He had a strong vision of the objectives of the brief, while also being able to step back and give us the opportunity to do our thing when needed. The perfect balance to do the job well.
— Stuart Miller | Photographer
While being an incredible designer (both above and below the line) Alex is simultaneously a strong, confident conceptual creative who is more than capable of generating award-worthy ideas.

He is ever the consummate professional, highly amiable and outgoing. Easy to talk to and even easier to work with, Alex is a valued commodity for any workplace. I cannot recommend him enough, both professionally and personally.
— Steve Gurney | Associate Creative Director, Omobono
Alex looks to the why’s behind a brief. He wants to deliver something special but he also strives to make sure it is hard-working – an approach that delivers a better performing form of creative.
— Robert Goldsmith | Managing Partner, Spinnaker
Alex is as reliable as he is keen. He will challenge and question a brief, but only to get the best out of it.
— Jim Archer | Creative Director, Them London
Not only is Alex a fantastic designer, he is a brilliant conceptual creative and was a priceless asset to myself and my clients.
— Nicole Burns | Senior Consultant & Digital lead, Havas Health & You
He’s a lovely boy. I’d hire him.
— Beverly Ward | Mum