Meet Chenxu Huang | Graphic Designer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Chenxu Huang and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Chenxu, why did you pursue a creative career?
Before I became a graphic designer, I studied computer science at the undergraduate level. My computer science experience gave me a more logical way of thinking and problem-solving. However, I was also looking for a more versatile way to achieve a more personal approach to problem-solving. Starting with photography and videography, I gradually learned about graphic design and realized my passion and I have been focusing on graphic design ever since.

For me, graphic design is a rational approach to solving emotional problems. This kind of intertwined state is very fascinating to me, because I have to summarize my own methodology to work, and I enjoy the process of solving problems, and the final result is also quite my personal style.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
In the case of my book design, The Men in The Torrent, my intention was to honor the special moment of having five generations in my family. I imagined that the book would be like a museum of my family’s history. I gathered a lot of interviews and historical materials to organize the entire family history. In the process, I came to realize that each generation had a very different destiny, but that people of the same generation had similar experiences. My family’s 99-year-long history of five generations is also a representation of the real history of China from the perspective of ordinary people. People born in different generations have destinies that are highly related to the times, and all ordinary people can only go with the flow in front of the tides of the times. Therefore, the English name of this book is The Men in The Torrent, and I have used three clues to make it more complete: the first clue is the color of the paper, which represents the age of the generation; the second clue is that different individual objects are used to represent the main goals of people in different generations. For example, a bowl represents that the main goal of the first generation was to survive. The third clue is the different types of waves in a day: morning and evening tides and flat tides, which are used to represent whether or not the environment is tough in different generations.

So my working method is basically to start by solving the most basic problems, and in the process of solving the problems, through research and experimenting with the formal language to find the most unique design solution that fits the goal. I am never limited to the medium I use, I only care about the form I need.

I am also passionate about communicating different cultures in my design projects, to ignite an interest in different cultures and to promote tolerance for different cultures.

Regarding my project African Oscillation Club, the theme is about West African electronic music from 1975 to 2005, due to my love for electronic music, when I heard some African electronic music from the 1970s such as Good Name by William Onyeabor, I was surprised to find that the songs were so pioneering and experimental. As I searched for more related genres, I gradually discovered some characteristics: most of the pioneering electronic music came from West Africa, and even though a lot of African electronic music sounds so upbeat, at its core it sometimes wants to express serious themes such as social reform and nuclear deterrence. I personally find this very interesting and I’m happy to convey such a unique culture to people.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
If this were a week-long trip, I would take my friends to see the art market and various contemporary art exhibitions. In addition, I will take them to eat ice cream or play basketball, which is my favorite thing.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
The most important thing I want to mention is my computer learning experience. Coding is a great way to train logical thinking skills, and I think it is important to be able to break down a complex problem into smaller problems and then into elementary problems. When I come across a design proposal, I tend to use this kind of thinking to help me break down the problem. On top of that, the teachers in the Maryland Institute College of Art’s Master of Graphic Design department have helped me a lot.

Instagram: agedhwang