Aspasia Lin
ILLUSTRATOR • Designer • Animator
I’m Aspasia [uh•SPAY•zhuh], a graphic designer, illustrator, and animator based in southwest Missouri. As a naturally creative thinker and problem solver, I am highly adaptable, love a challenge, and excel at working with clients to best articulate their vision. Scroll this page to get a glimpse of just some of my client work, projects, and award-winning designs.
Education
Associate of Applied Science,
Graphic Design Technology, 2023
Ozarks Technical Community College
Springfield, Missouri
DigiPen Academy, ProjectFun
2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018
DigiPen Institute of Technology
Redmond, Washington
Courses: Animation, 3D Animation, Character Design, Sculpture, Puppetry
ART & Technical Skills
Adobe Illustrator
Adobe Photoshop
Adobe After Effects
Adobe InDesign
Canva
Social media tools
Anatomy
Sketching/drawing
Motion graphics
Photography
Sculpting
Soft Skills
Creativity
Problem-solving
Adaptability
Teamwork
Collaboration
Communication
Listening
Ideating
Growth mindset
Receptivity to feedback
Emotional intelligence
Constructive criticism
Award-winning designs
Designs in this section have earned recognition from a prestigious leading authority on advertising design.
Movie title sequence
2023 Silver ADDY Award (student)
Category: Animation/special effects
American Advertising Federation — Heartland
This animated title sequence won a Silver ADDY Award and at the time, I had only four months of experience using Adobe After Effects. In addition, when this project was assigned, the movie had not been released, so I had very limited information on which to base the title sequence. I studied the existing trailers to get a sense of the characters and key elements to include in the title sequence. I illustrated the characters in different colors to correspond to the colors they wore in the movie. At the end of the title sequence, I incorporated the invitation—a key component in the movie—which also plays into what the director said, “I invite you to watch.” In the movie, invitations are sent to each character before they embark on their journey. Including the invitation in the title sequence invites the viewer into the story. My inspiration was the title sequence for The Adventures of Tintin; it really left an imprint on me as a kid because of the witty transitions.
Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
Watch the award-winning title sequence. Be sure to unmute the accompanying audio.
Poster design
2023 Silver ADDY Award (student)
Category: Illustration
American Advertising Federation — Heartland
The goal of this project was to design an effective event poster. The topic inspired a bold and colorful aesthetic. Using Adobe Illustrator, I illustrated and designed the character to have a punk rock, yet classy, style. I chose a font that would provide nice repetition alongside the lines used in the illustration.
Door-size poster design
2023 Silver ADDY Award (student)
Category: Site
American Advertising Federation — Heartland
This project tasked our team of four with designing an oversized poster covering an entire classroom door to convey that ideas can come from anywhere.
Work process
After brainstorming ideas, everyone contributed a quick sketch of their best idea and then I developed a concept including all contributions within an initial sketch. Each member then had an assigned task to refine and develop. Once everyone contributed their parts, I put them together with mine using Adobe Illustrator and made adjustments to everyone's illustrations to ensure a cohesive design.
Key takeaways
This project challenged me to develop my communication and coordination skills. I learned that it can be difficult to have dependencies on others and that relentless determination breeds success. I also learned that I work well under pressure.
Close-up of the brain I illustrated
Mochas & Meows logo
2024 Silver ADDY Award (student)
Category: Logo design
American Advertising Federation — Heartland
The goal of this assignment was to give a new face to a local brand. I chose Mochas & Meows. I designed the letters to fit in a coffee mug playfully and organically for a quirky vibe since this isn't your regular coffee shop. I also swapped their turquoise brand color for sky blue and dark blue to feel more trustworthy for their target audience.
Check out the corresponding brand collateral (cat & drink carriers, business card, folder, etc.) in the Brand Design section further below.
Representational drawing
Excellence as a professional designer and illustrator requires mastery of drawing and composition. I have been drawing since early childhood, studying anatomy, and even dabbling in taxidermy. The below drawing samples were done in my teenage years.
Anatomical drawing
Inspired by a nature walk on which I discovered an injured blue jay, I picked him up hoping to revive him. Sadly, he was beyond saving. Nature is so beautiful and delicate and I wanted to preserve the beauty of the bird encounter. The bird reminded me of a sleeping child in their parent’s embrace. I sketched this piece using graphite on paper.
Drawing from life
This drawing was inspired by life. One summer, our regular visiting wild bunny decided to nest in our cabbages. My mother had no idea and harvested her cabbages which then exposed the bunny nest, but the babies still seemed sufficiently hidden from possible predators. The next morning I found only one of the four babies and a nearby cat keeping a watchful eye. Thinking on my feet, I took an old snow boot and slipped the baby bunny inside to provide a safe warm shelter. I developed this piece using graphite, watercolor, ink pen, and colored pencil.
Drawing from photos
I was astonished by the colors of this amazing fish. I asked the original photographer for permission to use their image as a reference to which they said yes. The medium I used was colored pencil and watercolor.
Illustration
Illustration is a major component within all of my designs. All of my projects feature my original illustration artwork and I am passionate about communication through illustration.
Snowboard design
Why a tropical bird on a snowboard? Why do humans go to the mountains to slide on snow at breakneck speed? The thrill-seeking flamingo seemed like fun energy paired with snowboarders. The type of board I was assigned was “directional” and the target audience was female. The directional board helps a snowboarder make sharp, hairpin turns. This aspect was represented by the very long curved neck and subtle arrows.
Laptop sticker for AWS
To celebrate the launch of a new feature, a team at Amazon Web Services (AWS) sought a specially designed laptop sticker for those involved in the project. I contributed the cupcake illustration as one of my very first Illustrator projects.
Book cover design
This project was to create a book cover for a classic children’s book. I designed a cover for the book titled Holes. Prior covers for this book were from the perspective of looking into a hole or looking up out of a hole. I wanted to make the title itself the hole with the focus on the main character. My inspiration for the style was comic books and old western illustrations to appeal to the target audience of 1st-8th graders. This was the last project of my first semester and I had no prior experience with Adobe Illustrator prior to college.
Magazine cover design
In this school project, I was tasked with designing a magazine cover for a fictitious magazine The Springfielder modeled after the well-known publication, The New Yorker. Students could choose from among four topics; I chose Springfield traffic since I seldom find myself surrounded by good drivers in Springfield. I developed the concept and illustrated it using Adobe Illustrator.
Character illustration
Mr. John is an illustrated character I created. He’s a pessimistic high school art professor known for self-sabotage due to selfishness and cowardice. He is always getting stuck in unlucky situations like spilling paint on his favorite pants and setting the microwave on fire with his morning coffee. He represents the fear of not truly pursuing your goals due to insecurity and ungroundedness. These characteristics are conveyed through his posture being slightly slouched, wide worried eyes, paint splotches on his pants, and clothes that don’t quite match. I developed this character at the beginning of my second semester.
Close-up of Mr. John’s hand
Package design
Showcased below are some package designs I developed. I used my illustration skills and incorporated whimsical characters and bright colors to attract the target audiences.
Package design: UFOs cereal
For a school project, I was tasked with designing a kid's cereal box. I used my illustration, design, and photography skills to develop a colorful cereal box to appeal to the young and young at heart. To satisfy the need for entertainment and education while dining on a delicious breakfast of UFOs, I incorporated fun facts and a connect-the-stars activity (which is like dot-to-dot).
Package design: Specialty beverage 2-pack gift set
This school project involved designing 2 unique beverage labels, as well as a gift box designed to contain the set.
Beverage labels
I developed a specialty drink pairing as a boxed gift set. I wanted the aesthetic to give an exciting tropical paradise feel to match the envisioned flavors. Each beverage in the set had a unique fruit flavor. I decided to feature exotic tropical birds crafted with elements from the featured fruits. For example, in one label, the birds are twin cherries. In the other label, the bird feathers and wings feature various pineapple and citrus elements. The box itself was a unique hexagon shape that I also repeated on one of the drink labels and on one of the bird's feathers.
Beverage 2-pack gift box
This package template was an amalgamation of templates that I combined myself. Inspired by my prior experience working at Walmart in the kid's toy section, surrounded by exciting, colorful boxes, with unique cutouts, I decided to incorporate the bird character cutouts in the box design.
Package design:
Grow Bot toy
This was my second school project using Adobe Illustrator. I was tasked with developing a creative package design for a kid's toy.
Advertising design
Advertising design helps promote products and services. Below are just a few advertising design projects I have delivered.
Brochure design
For this school project, I designed a brochure cover for the St. Louis Zoo. I used bold colors and imagery to really showcase the animals and information.
Brochure - front cover
The front cover features the headshot of a tiger, and the text highlights the number of animals. The zoo’s logo is also incorporated for brand recognition.
Centerfold
The center features continuity of the color scheme and highlights key information while the zebras and toucan add visual interest and excitement.
Brochure - back cover
The back of the brochure provides all the essential details to plan your trip, as well as testimonials and the website for more information.
Ad campaign
For this assignment, I was tasked with using humor and the unexpected to promote a popular toothpaste brand. I brainstormed and developed several fun concepts that really draw the viewer in.
Movie poster
The story follows a cowboy whose golden watch was stolen and his mission is to find the thief and take it back. I loved capturing the essence of the wild west. I wanted to transport the viewer through time by taking them alongside the cowboy walking through the watch into the wild west with gun-slinging cowboys.
Brand design
Establishing a strong, consistent brand identity and accompanying collateral is important because it sets the customers’ perception of your business and promotes recognition. Showcased below are some brand identities I have developed.
Logo design
A local church requested a logo design for their children's program called Super Church. Their desire was for a superhero style to represent their theme. They wanted something that would attract and excite young children. I developed this logo and they later asked that I paint a mural of the logo inside their children's wing. You can see a photo of me in front of that work in progress.
Rigid Rangers logo
The mission I was assigned was to make an original logo for a hiking company. I came up with the name “Rigid Rangers” because of mountain ridges and ranges. The antlers attract attention and tie into their slogan “Rigid Rangers, so you can roam nature as effortlessly as a deer,” while the typography is angular and tough.
Rigid Rangers style guide
The goal of this project was to establish a set of design and stylistic standards to support and reinforce the brand identity for a fictitious company, Rigid Rangers. The company offers a wide range of clothing and supplies to equip outdoor enthusiasts for all their pursuits. The feeling I wanted to elicit was rustic, yet mystical, to represent how being in touch with nature feels. The frame was inspired by the font used on the logo. Illustrations guide and hold the attention of the reader. I chose very simple fonts so the focus would be on the logos, illustrations, and examples.
Rigid Rangers billboard:
Never Stop Exploring
The company loves to support people’s adventures. This billboard represents the experience of walking through the trees and finding a beautiful view. The font treatment reinforces the experience by following the tree line up higher to suggest exploring that which is beyond one’s view. The yellow imagery represents optimism.
Rigid Rangers billboard:
Pack Lighter
Rigid Rangers offers a wide range of clothing and supplies to help outdoor adventurers be equipped and comfortable without excess weight or hindrance. The company wanted to highlight its commitment to light gear and what that means for customers. This billboard was designed to support the company’s desire for a cohesive set of advertising collateral that expressed their brand identity and values. Notice how both billboards feel like part of the same family and yet are unique at the same time.
Mochas & Meows logo
The goal of this assignment was to give a new face to a local brand. I chose Mochas & Meows. I designed the letters to fit in a coffee mug playfully and organically for a quirky vibe since this isn't your regular coffee shop. I also swapped their turquoise brand color for sky blue and dark blue to feel more trustworthy for their target audience.
Silver ADDY Award (student)
Category: Logo design
American Advertising Federation — Heartland
Mochas & Meows
logo motion graphic
Animated logos are great for use in digital format, social media, and more. I created this short and sweet logo animation for Mochas & Meows. I made all the letters pop up and jiggle to evoke a fun-loving attitude. The little foam art cat meows and a steam puff heart appears.
Mochas & Meows
business card
For brand continuity, I also designed this uniquely shaped business card. I wanted this card to stand out with its shape and to tell the viewer exactly what the business is about upon seeing it.
template
folded
Mochas & Meows folder
No adoption is complete without the paperwork. To carry the brand identity through to the adoption phase, I designed a unique folder to organize all the adoption paperwork and materials. I developed my own template and let my creativity roam wild.
Mochas & Meows
takeout boxes
Of course, everyone wants to transport their kittens and coffee in style. With these adorable “takeout” boxes, adoptive owners can safely and adorably take their kittens and their coffee home. Envious onlookers will see the brand identity and immediately know where they too can take-out coffee or adopt a new kitty.
Artoholic Studio
logo & business card
This fun, creative business wanted a fresh look to convey exactly that—fun & creative! Since the business offers paint parties, I incorporated the paintbrush, colorful brush strokes, and paint splashes.
I also developed a corresponding business card design, further integrating the color scheme and illustrations for visual interest.
Artoholic Studio
social media posts
When this business needed to advertise an upcoming event, they asked me to develop effective social media posts to stir interest and prompt registrations.
Let's work together!
