Florentina Surel

Brand & Product Illustrator

Copenhagen, Denmark
Hi - I'm a professional product & brand illustrator based in Copenhagen, producing custom work that breathe soul into tech products and digital publications.

I enjoy working with both raster and vector graphics, and welcome both small or enterprise clients who know exactly what they want or those who are in the beginning of their project.

My ultimate goal is to create illustrations that seamlessly integrate into their intended environments. Consider me a versatile designer who can adapt to any illustration style required by clients. While I am more than capable of bringing my personal style to the table, I am equally comfortable letting it playfully thrive on my instagram playground.

My style could be described as dynamic, clean yet painterly, surrealistic yet able to engage and move the user/viewer, inclusive and intentional. I create with the idea that technology only thrives when paired with art in mind.

I create illustration for: Illustration systems, Branding, Editorials & Blogs, Marketing & Apps, Corporate Identity, Concept development, Traditional animation, Iconography, Characters & Portraits.

Work Experience

Workday

In-house Brand & Product Illustrator

This was the first time I landed in an already established illustration team, with an existent library of full illustration scenes, characters, spots, icons.

Some projects I contributed to are:
- Yearly marketing events (Workday Rising 2022, Elevate 2022, Design Matters 2022)
- Corporate branding materials (such as end of year cards, employer branding events such as Copenhagen DHL run, etc.)
- Illustrations for our digital publications (smartCIO, Heartbeat, Workday podcast)
- Illustrations for use in the product & animations
- Illustrations for use in ABM (Account Based Marketing)
April 2021 - Present Denmark

Peakon

In-house Brand & Product Illustrator

As an illustrator at Peakon, I have been involved in 3 rebranding projects, helping to make illustration a large part of the company's corporate identity, each time stronger than before. I am not alone in saying that the 2nd rebranding, led by Kontrapunkt, was a real success, leading to Peakon's positioning as a design-centric company that became an inspiration for other startups in Denmark, and also to its acquisition by Workday.

Beyond the daily output, I’ve proudly:
- created Peakon’s illustration library,
- contributed to the Product design system library by creating icon sets
- contributed to [Heartbeat](https://heartbeat.peakon.com/), our digital publication which uses employee engagement data to reveal the latest findings about the world of work,
- created numerous illustration assets for marketing, sales & internal teams.
April 2019 - April 2021 Denmark

Magnetix

Digital Design Intern

Isobar, actual Isobar Magnetix, is a global full-service digital agency.
I was part of the Social team and responsible for maintaining a valuable presence on social media for multiple brands. My tasks involved both the idea generation and creation of the post, mostly on Facebook.

I was part of a team responsible for the visual style improvement of the Facebook page appearance of REMA 1000, which is a great supermarket chain in Denmark.

Brands I had the opportunity to work with are:
- REMA 1000
- OREO
- Marabou
- Marabou Premium
- Rynkeby
- The Coca-Cola Company
- Gyldendal
- Danske Spil Lotto
- Reebok
- ECCO
- Royal Copenhagen
August 2016 - January 2017 Copenhagen, Denmark

Languages

English (Fluent),
Romanian (Native),

Skills

Adobe Creative Suite, Adobe Fresco, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, Affinity Designer, Blog Illustration, Brand, Brand Design, Editorial Illustration, Icons, Illustration, Illustration Identity, Illustration System, Marketing Illustration, Procreate App, Product Illustration, Tech Illustration,

Interview with Florentina Surel: Art & Magic, 2021

RO: https://www.iqads.ro/articol/53591/art-magic-florentina-surel-desenul-m-a-invatat-ca-avem-nevoie-cu-cat-avansam

Interview with Illustrator Florentina Surel, by Alexander Sizikov, 2019

https://speakingwithbirches.com/2019/03/05/interview-with-illustrator-florentina-surel/

Interview with Florentina Surel: October in Ink, 2017

RO: https://www.iqads.ro/articol/40729/octombrie-in-tus-florentina-surel-si-ambitia-de-a-nu-renunta-inspiratia-mea-a