Jeremy Bonggu Kang is a multidisciplinary graphic designer, painter, illustrator skilled in developing concepts and visualizing creative ideas in exquisitely detailed design. He graduated from Seoul Art High School and received a bachelor’s degree in painting at Seoul National University in Korea. He then moved to Vancouver, Canada to study graphic design at LaSalle College, (formerly the Art Institute of Vancouver) and received a bachelor’s degree in graphic design in 2019.

My life has always been a life related to art in many ways. Since I can remember myself as a being, I've always wanted to create something. I draw, make, design, sculpt, and think for more. I wanted to become an artist, a painter first, then I studied design and now, I'm walking on the road of a graphic designer.

At the moment, I'm working as a freelance graphic designer, specialized in branding and illustration.

For me, creativity is what makes me excited and alive when I design or create. I try to be creative and keep creativity inside all of my works as much as I can. My heart beats so fast when I see the creativity of others. I think the world is full of creative people and their works, and it challenges me all the time.

I think I'm like an analyst or a scholar-type designer. After enough research, I start to design or create something. I love history, museums, and all the websites present other designers' works because they teach me about many successful cases of the creative mind. And also, the process of concept development is one of the most important steps in the designing process. Detailed and strong concept development makes the strong foundation of a design.

My creative process is like this: researching – analyzing – developing concepts – visualizing – designing. I like every step of the process, and I try to build a strong concept for each project. That’s why I spent a lot of time on the first four steps out of the five, especially the first three. I strongly believe that every design needs a strong concept and visuals that perfectly match each other. And I believe that can be achieved from the very early stages of design: the research, analysis, and developing concepts.

Concept development is my favourite part of the creative process. The process of expanding and deepening the concept of the design project is like solving a problem or a puzzle that has no fixed answer. But there are always better answers, and finding the better answer is fully up to the designer's ability.

Diversity and versatility are my creative styles and also their main characteristics. My fine arts education background helps me cover a wide range of knowledge and skills in general arts fields. And my design education taught me how to think like a designer. So I can create from classy/luxurious design to fun/trendy design.

I was born and raised in Korea. And I graduated from an art high school and majored in painting at a fine arts university in Korea. Then I moved into Vancouver and studied graphic design. All the knowledge and skill that I learned and practiced in Korea definitely made a strong foundation of my creative mind. And all the teachings about graphic design in Vancouver shaped me as a creative designer.

The recognition by the 2021 MUSE Creative Awards for my work gives me the courage to keep chasing my dream. It really helps me to have faith in what I’ve done and what I am doing at the moment as a graphic designer.

The winning work was for the senior project at the last term before my graduation. I tried to avoid stereotyped illustrations about the mythical creatures from the researching stage for the’ Mystic Wings’. I tried to use my own imagination and to persuade myself first, by throwing myself a question: “Do you think your illustrations can be the eye-witnessing pictures for these mythical creatures?” And I satisfied the result of my work and I wanted to know what others think about my work. I thought the MUSE Creative Awards can be a good award plarforn to test my work.

The biggest challenge for the project was time. The original plan for the book had many more creatures than the current version. The project was for the senior project at the last term before my graduation, and I didn’t have enough time to finish all the illustrations from the original plan. I’m working on the rest of the pages for the publication of the book.

Personally, I can have confidence in my work and ability. And in the view of clients, they can trust me and my ability as a designer more than before.

Creative people, creative competition, and creative products that please my eyes and mind.

I'm a Korean living in Canada. So I want to talk about both of them. Koreans are very competitive, passionate, creative, and sensitive about every trend. These characteristics make Korea strong, especially in this fast-paced creative industry. Koreans are strong to read the trend and always try to create new things ASAP with their own interpretations.

Canada is a country that has a peaceful, relaxed and kind environment with beautiful nature all around. This makes the country cares about sustainability more than any other country, I think. And the diversity of the culture in a country makes beautiful cultural blends in the creative industry.

Just believe in yourself and keep going on what you do.

Try to research a lot for your eyes, and keep creating something. Practice and failure make your skill strong.

These days, I'm into watching documentaries.

Leonardo Da Vinci is my all-time favourite human being and artist besides Jesus. I've fallen in love with his works since I was very young. His life and his works always inspire me to create something. And my parents are truly inspiring people, after all. They are hard-working people and full of love for their children. They never give up on me and that's how I can live now chasing my dreams.

I believe that nobody can beat the one who enjoys their work. I try to enjoy my work and everything I do.