Ana Kova x formlabs — Ana Kova Illustration

Dear formlabs,

My name is Ana Kova, I’m a Berlin-based visual designer and illustrator. I’d like to express my interest in your Graphic Designer position in Berlin.

A little about my design process

My CV (PDF)

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I’m excited to apply because according to the description this role involves doing a wide variety of tasks and wearing many hats. I’m a self-taught designer with an academic background in political science who has compulsively worked within various domains, and I’d love to continue to do so. My design background includes branding, product design, UX design, illustration, presentation design, and animated storytelling. I’ve also completed the General Assembly’s Front End Development course.

Some of my recent projects include an infographic poster for Lyft, a cover feature on artificial intelligence in Think:Act Magazine (for Axel Springer), and numerous science-related projects in collaboration with Sandbox Studio. Past clients include US Department of Energy, CERN, SLAC, Fermilab, Japan’s High Energy Accelerator Research Organization (KEK), Know Your Company, Quanta Magazine, Crack Magazine, Symmetry Magazine, and various startups.

As a product and UI/UX designer I’ve completed projects for One Design, Digital Intent, Techstars Chicago cohort of 2014 (where I juggled working on 10 companies simultaneously), and independently for various startups. As a result of my years in product design I tend to approach every project strategically, taking time to outline crear goals, considering symbolic narratives, and prototype-testing variations where it makes sense.

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Below I’ve outlined how my experience fits the specific demands of the job, with relevant project examples.

I’ve designed identity systems.

I’ve developed brands from the ground-up and across media contexts. In 2016 I designed the identity for sister apps Stridekick and Movespring, including hand-lettered logos and a custom illustration style.

An example of early stage identity strategy --
A 21st century programming textbook

I’m comfortable working within existing brands.

A small print marketing project for Know Your Company

Lyft has an internal department for onboarding new drivers and driver support. For a recent project Lyft asked me to create a poster for this department, using illustrations and staff-sourced tips. It was important to communicate the four pillars of conduct (Welcome, Connect, Support, Delight) with respective tips, and the onboarding sequence, while keeping the tone fun and casual rather than oppressive or corporate. The poster is currently in production to be printed in A1 format and displayed in Lyft offices across the US.
_{I based my design on a style guide shared by Lyft (pictured partially)}

_Poster

_Detail

I regularly work with technical and narrative content for web and print.

As a science communicator, I work with information that might be dense or technical, developing concepts for hard-to-visualize things like certain areas of theoretical physics. I believe I can put this experience to good use to tell stories for formlabs.

Below are a few recent examples of my illustration work for web and print.

_{The DUNE neutrino experiment (Symmetry)}

_{Neutron star collision lights up the sky (Quanta)}

_{Exploring the fabric of the universe (International Linear Collider, print)}

_{Plasma: at the frontier of scientific discovery (US Department of Energy, print)}

_{The Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST)}

Let me know if you’d like to see more of any particular kind of work, as my instagram and this portfolio are focused chiefly around science communication.

I would be thrilled if you consider working with me, and hope to hear from you soon.

Sincerely,
Ana

You can email me at ana@anakova.com to get in touch, and find additional contact details inside my CV.

My CV (PDF)

Info / Instagram

I’ve designed identity systems.

I’m comfortable working within existing brands.

I regularly work with technical and narrative content for web and print.