About the Designer
Generally Speaking..
My name is Jonathan Anthony Keller. I’m 21 years old and I was born in Brooklyn New York. I moved to Orangeburg South Carolina when I was about 12. I attended Claflin University with a major in Studio art for 2 full years from the age of 18 before transferring to The Art Institute of Charleston in South Carolina in which I am currently enrolled. I’m working toward my Bachelor’s degree in Graphic Design and am in my second year. Before coming to Charleston I’d had no previous experience in any of the Adobe programs, I wasn’t even sure what a Graphic Designers’ Job was! But I knew that I wanted to do something that was more progressive and mainstream than studio art, something that I could apply and use in the real world. I immediately took to Design and all of it’s magnificent possibilities. I applied a lot of the knowledge that I’d acquired whilst in my studio art major and was able to produce pieces that both showcased my talents as an illustrator and at the same time reflected my style and perspective in terms of design.
Design Philosophy
When it comes to design, I like to go for something that is simple but still speaks it’s message clearly. A good design doesn’t have to be complicated. I like to first begin with a couple of sketches to get the design process started and generate some good ideas. After which of course comes discussion with the client to figure out which one speaks it’s message most clearly. Colour is also important. Choosing the right colour can speak for the ad itself because colour evokes so many types of emotions. As far as font choices and graphics go, I like to employ clean edges, trendy graphics and modern fonts, however adding a bit of grunge is always an interesting exploration for me. To me these characteristics are ideal and appeal greatly to today’s culture. When I’m working with a client communication is key. The clients ideas are important to me and my job is to dedicate myself to the clients wishes and incorporate them as best I can in an efficient way. Graphic Design is not only a method to speak to the world about who you are and how you relate to the world but also how the world relates to you.
FAQ, where did the name “Shinzart” come from?
You wouldn’t believe how many times I get this question. And so to save a little time, and numerous emails, I thought I’d go ahead and break it down. It’s possessive. Basically, my high school friends and I were all about anime when were younger and so we chose Japanese names for one another. Shinzou, meaning heart in Japanese was mine. And so this is my art, shinzart. It also works on two levels, as does the tagline “Creativity is in the works”. Because the word “shin” in Japanese means new. It’s my new art.