Hi! My name is Izeh Harold. I’m a 24 year old, hand-lettering artist from Virginia Beach, VA. I’ve been studying Graphic Design for about 5 years now. I attended James Madison University in 2017 for architectural design for a year, before transferring to Old Dominion University in 2018. I studied graphic design there for 3 years, while also working at the university as a Junior Graphic Designer in the Intercultural Relation Department. There, I would help create marketing material and designs for the schools international students.
Prior to studying design, I was always visually skilled. I loved to draw as a kid, make costumes out of cardboard, and play with legos. I drew and built anything my mind could think of. My mother was also artistcally gifted and she taught me to draw what I saw at a young age. She would paint murals and graffiti on my bedroom walls. I always admired her paintings, so I drew a lot as well. Doing this at such a young age helped me become very observant and detailed oriented. From elementary school to middle school, I attended the Old Donation Center, School for visual and Performing Arts, every Monday out of the school week. In High School, I studied IB (international Baccalaureate) Art. You could say art was apart of me my whole life.
It wasn’t until I left JMU, that I would discover my passion for design. The transition from an artist to a designer was a bumpy road for me because I had to let go of a lot ideologies I had about art, but it made me into a better designer. I started designing anything and everything I could to get better. For about 2 years, cover art was a big request by a lot of my clients. Did I mention I love music? Cover art was my first introduction into design, and my skills kept growing from there. Cover art taught me the importance of good typography, and I eventually would take a step back and focus on hand lettering, leading me to where I am today.
My goal as a designer is to continue polishing off my skills and learning new things, that not only benefit me, but helps my clients see a bigger vision for their brand or business.