Showcase & Discover Creative Work

Brian Yap is a designer and illustrator, currently working as a creative director at Boxing Clever, a boutique, advertising agency in the Midwest. After graduating from VCU’s School of Communication Arts and Design, he moved to the Saint Louis, MO to work as everything from a toy designer to apparel line-builder before moving into advertising. As a creative director, he works for clients like Brown Forman, Saint Louis International Airport, Accenture, and recently Adobe Systems. At the core of what he does is a respect for what illustrative styles can do for the visual impact of any design, whether it is a poster for a local rock venue or a national promotions program. As national music acts come through the Midwest, they often do appearances at one of the country’s largest non-chain music stores – Vintage Vinyl. The posters for these events have helped to show off his work to a larger audience. Read Less

"I was born in Honolulu, a Navy brat who moved a lot. It definitely shows in my personality and design. If anything, I became very good at adapting and absorbing my environment and it took me a long time to get to a point where I felt like my work properly reflected all those influences.

I lived in San Diego being a big fan of skateboard and surf graphics, then in DC during hardcore and punk and want all of that to feed into my love of graffiti from the years I airbrushed tee shirts and the pen and ink techniques of classic American illustrators. Throw in a huge appreciation for tattooing and hand-lettering and put it in a blender. All of those places defined me, and the Midwest is the craziest and weirdest place I could’ve ever imagined ending up. The idea that talent and creativity is only fostered in big cities on the coasts, just keeps the people here working harder and creating more. The work ethic here is inspiring." Read Less