Calin Alexander is a multidisciplinary designer born in Europe, who now lives and works in Auckland City, New Zealand. 

He would describe himself as an inquisitive person, fascinated by the master design of existence itself, always happy to learn about new things, and to share his knowledge and humor with the people he knows, whether they are work colleagues or friends.

Calin had an unconventional start to his career. After finishing high school in unsettling times in his country, he faced the challenge of not knowing what to do next because there was no design school at that time. So, he did the next best thing and went to study International Business and Trade and Commerce at The Romanian-American University, but after three years, he realized he wasn't cut out for it. Determined to pursue his passion for design, he started over at the newly opened Uniteh University of Bucharest to study Graphic and Industrial Design. During his studies, he went the extra mile and taught himself all sorts of design skills, which landed him his first job at Apa Nova Bucharest (now a part of Veolia). He fondly remembers the small team he worked with - he made some friends for life here - and the positive experiences he gained.

After two years, Calin moved on to a groundbreaking opportunity at Realitatea TV, where he was part of the team that launched Romania's first-ever 24-hour news TV channel. Here, his role was focused on developing and maintaining the channel's visual identity, which included producing promo graphics for the channel. Realitatea TV was a fantastic and exciting project to be a part of. He was proud to contribute to the channel's success and to be part of a team that was dedicated to delivering high-quality news and programming to viewers.

In 2004, Calin moved from the TV channel to Scenography Art, and he had the opportunity to work as a graphic designer on a variety of set design projects for TV shows and studios. Some of the clients that he worked with during his time at Scenography Art included TVR (Romanian National Channel), Antena 1 TV, Prima TV, Realitatea TV, Etno TV, and Alpha TV. Working on set design projects for TV shows and studios was a fascinating and rewarding experience that helped him to grow both creatively and professionally.

At Skepsis Advertising, Calin had the opportunity to work with some of the agency's most important clients, including Coca-Cola, Orange, ING, GSK, LG Mobile, Holcim, and Exim Bank. This involved collaborating with other designers, copywriters, and event planners to ensure that all visual elements were cohesive and aligned with the event's theme. (Some examples include: Harry Potter X-mas for Coca-Cola, The Chapel for Orange, and 10-year Anniversary for ING.) His experience at Skepsis Advertising allowed him to develop his design skills in a fast-paced and dynamic environment and to work on high-profile projects for some of the country's most recognizable brands.

A few months later, he opened a new chapter of his life in New Zealand and started working for The Brand Factory, a small 100% Kiwi-owned and operated agency. His responsibilities included designing for both print and web for a diverse range of important clients from New Zealand and Australia, such as GSK, Auckland Fish Market, Besfoods New Zealand, MoleMap, Wilson Parking, Kohu Road, Oxfam, Venerdi, Turkish Kitchen, United Video, Perri Cider, Little Lamb, Esquires, Ribena, SoulThai, EziPay, Freedom Farms, Calico, Thirst, Econergy, and Toby’s Seafood. He still keeps in touch with Brett, chatting about life and design over coffee or a beer and recalling the good times they had working together.

When the economic recession hit the small agency, Calin founded his own studio, Web Creative Store, to keep going. His most significant project was working on the interface of a karaoke app for iOS called Lyrical, developed by Peerpoint LLC, an American start-up. His time as the Creative Director at Web Creative Store was challenging but incredibly rewarding. Working on the Lyrical app was a particularly exciting project, and he was proud of the designs he created.

By far, Calin's longest professional journey in New Zealand was his eight-year tenure at Auckland Transport. He was part of an extraordinary, award-winning design team. In June 2015, Auckland Transport's 2014 Annual Report was one of only two reports from New Zealand awarded Gold at the Australian Reporting Awards. The report also won an NZ "Pride in Print" award. At AT, one of his most significant projects was collaborating with the Televic Rail team from Belgium to set up a system for passenger information for Auckland Transport. It is worth noting that he contributed to the transition from a print-based design studio to a multidisciplinary one. This involved exploring new concepts and ideas that could help improve the experience of Auckland Transport's customers and developing new design solutions that incorporated emerging technologies and innovative approaches. 

Fast-forward to today, Calin has gained a unique perspective and valuable skills from his experiences in different companies and industries. These skills have helped him in his current role at the University of Auckland's Faculty of Engineering, where he is surrounded by some amazing people. One of his major achievements was designing the biggest event of the year in 2022, called Mānawa Mai Open Day. Close collaboration with the marketing team was necessary to develop a strong creative direction that aligned with the event's goals and target audience. In addition to designing materials for Mānawa Mai Open Day, he also refreshed the design direction for pull-up banners, marketing materials such as posters and flyers, and internal digital screens promoting internal and external events for the next year.

Calin has had an incredible journey so far, filled with challenges and setbacks. But he never gave up on his passion for design and learned so much along the way. All of his experiences taught him how to adapt to different types of projects and switch mindsets quickly. And now, he's excited and ready for whatever the future holds!