The person behind the pixels

Hello. I’m Jaclyn, but most people call me Jakki. I’m a graphic designer, artist, and front-end web developer.

This website has been my digital playground since 2009 and is primarily where I rant about all sorts of art related shenanigans and random stuff I get up to online and IRL.

I have a Bachelor of Arts and an Advanced Diploma of Graphic Design, however I have also self taught myself for many years before that. I enjoy experimenting with different mediums and techniques, and have always loved problem-solving and creating things with pixels, preferably with sparkles and rainbows too. I like exploring the relationship between nature and technology, have a soft spot for nostalgic, pastel flavoured design, and value simplicity, up-front real-ness, and meaningful storytelling.

Development

I am self taught in web development, and have been tinkering with HTML and CSS since I was 14 using basic PHP, JavaScript, and WordPress.

Many years and many nights of coding later, I now professionally design and build websites at a little studio called Monk.

I’m really proud of what I’ve learnt and achieved so far and can wholeheartedly say being able to interact with a website I’ve worked on is one of the best things about what I do.

Design

Design is something I always notice and am constantly trying to understand. It’s the lovely abstract, whimsical and almost nostalgic feeling you get with good design that motivates me to evoke that same feeling in other people. My foray into design began when I was 13 and the web beckoned within the amazing world of Neopets.

Digital design quickly became my favourite hobby growing up, and back when web standards were just emerging, the lack of best practices and standards helped me be at my most creative as you can see below!

Illustration

I’ve gone through many phases of producing art and taking extended breaks over the years, and am currently at that point where illustration is a complement, not the sole feature of my overall body of work.

I’ve always liked the idea of being an illustrative artist, but my style, workflow, and priorities means many of my drawings rarely make it past the sketching stage. That said I love a good illustration session and when I am in the zone I could literally go all night- usually with digital paint, otherwise, watercolours, pencils, or acrylics.