Hi, I'm Ciarán.

I'm a UI/Interaction designer, currently working for Dept® Agency in Dublin. I didn't take the typical route to becoming a designer, but I like to think that’s what enables me to bring something new to the table in how I create or solve problems. That’s not to mention that the journey’s been great!

A strong curiosity in people and culture lead me to live in 5 countries since graduating as a high-school Maths Teacher in 2014. The long and glorious teacher-holidays complimented my curiosity for new cultures, and resulted in countless priceless travel experiences throughout my 20s. Teaching internationally, I learned how to structure my ideas and deliver them in a way that’s engaging and easy to understand. Teaching math in Beijing, I was blessed with many students who were interested in and brilliant at math. The challenge was designing classes to keep the less interested students engaged too. So, I got pretty good a presenting and communicating abstract ideas and concepts.

The years spent exploring the world and convincing young minds of the beauty of mathematics were eye-opening, fun and exciting, but the time came for me to quit my job as a teacher and undertake a project that I’d been eying-up since graduating in the first place: becoming a designer. Luckily for me, that didn’t mean giving up on my love for exploring new places and cultures.

An absolute must in all the cities I visit is to check out their museums and galleries.

Tuesday nights in Beijing were my favourite; Modernista's life-drawing event.

I miss my days of rock-climbing which have taken a back-seat recently due to injury and a very busy shift in career.

Halloween in Beijing. The problem was what to use this massive fur coat to dress up as. The solution was Cruella Devil.

I like to jog. Here’s a picture of me losing in a race against my students in the 1000m on sports day.

It’s an exciting time to be standing on the fold between design and tech.

In October 2020, I joined a Masters course in Interaction Design at Harbour Space University in Barcelona, and enjoyed an almost overwhelming sense of satisfaction with how I'm focusing my attention. I studied intensely for 12 months, developing a knowledge and skills in visual design, designing brand experiences, UX design, creating interactivity, motion design, front-end development, creative coding and more. Now, my adventure continues. Since completing the masters late last year, I’ve been living in Bangkok, Thailand, doing some freelance design work, building my portfolio, and completing additional courses in design at Harbour Space’s sister university in Bangkok, UTCC.

I love the entire design process, from start to finish, but it’s finding the conceptual connective tissue which brings an entire project together that excites me most. Rather than losing the lessons I learned as a teacher, I apply them, looking for a narrative for each project that engages the audience and takes my design solutions to the next level.

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