Meet Anjum Mariam

We recently connected with Anjum Mariam and have shared our conversation below.

Anjum, so excited to have you with us today. So much we can chat about, but one of the questions we are most interested in is how you have managed to keep your creativity alive.

I think creativity is a way of being. I live in my creative world- my creative cocoon, a sanctuary of books, art, stories, poetry, illustrations, colour, travel, trees, the wilderness, day dreams and imagination. My everyday is filled with creating and the process of design- observing the world around, absorbing inspiration, finding moments of awe and wonder and putting pen to paper as the cycle of creativity flows.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

I am a multidisciplinary designer. In 2015, right after I graduated from art school, I began as a freelance designer and transitioned into a design studio I named ‘Oleander Crow’. Eponymous to a shrub, a flower, bird and butterfly, Oleander Crow enunciates colour and illustration in branding, creative strategy, book design, textile design, product design and more. My design journey has been an exciting experience in creative strategy and design for some of India’s largest and most appreciated brands and organisations across industries. I have had wonderful opportunities to collaborate with cafes and coffee brands, luxury and wildlife resorts, wildlife conservation, sustainable livelihood projects, travel and hospitality, home, wellness, hospitals and healthcare. In 2022, I moved to Savannah to study at the Savannah College of Art and Design. After two wonderful years at SCAD and Savannah, I just moved to New York to be a part of the design sphere here! I have exciting projects lined up and hope to grow my design studio here in New York too!

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

I think the first and most important quality for any artist or designer, and one that has guided me, is originality- a unique perspective in your work. In a world filled with imitations and derivatives, the effort to always remain original seems paramount.

Driving my approach to design, right from undergrad design school, has been the idea of a holistic or multidisciplinary approach to design. I believe every area of design is intertwined and linked. I find the boxes of ‘graphic designer’ ‘product designer’ ‘textile designer’ or ‘illustrator’ to be a very disjointed approach, limiting the larger picture of creation or the final outcome.

While my approach is holistic and spans a broad range, I spend time in the details. Whether they are the ones that throw in a punch or the ones that are often overlooked, I think the details define design.

To bring it all together, the most important qualities or areas for me would be originality-a unique perspective, a holistic approach to design and care in the details.

What has been your biggest area of growth or improvement in the past 12 months?

Eight years into my career, I decided to go back to design school for my Masters Degree at the Savannah College of Art and Design. I have always wanted to study at SCAD and I was finally able to make it happen! The past two years have been an extraordinary time of learning and growing. Honing my craft, looking and re-looking at ideas, working through different kinds of processes, refining details in illustration or design. Typical in an art school, through each stage of learning or each stage of our design and illustration we had critiques. A large part of my time back in art school was spent in ‘crit’ as we call it. Having every stage of my work, idea, and final artwork looked at under a magnifying glass, gave me new perspective each time- a new way to improve or look at the details. Being in design school, and an environment of learning and improving, really gave me the space and freedom to explore and grow.

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Anjum Mariam

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