SENIOR DESIGNER, COLOSSUS, BOSTON MA

Jess Ulman is a Senior Designer at Colossus, which she joined in 2023. Jess brings an artful touch to her work which spans branding, illustration, web design, and editorial design.

At Colossus, Jess led the forthcoming rebrand for the renowned performing arts institution Celebrity Series, a brand overhaul set to debut in early 2026. In addition, Jess has lent her unique style to recent branding projects for Dream Recovery, a sports performance company, as well as the massive rebrand for Highspring, a global professional services organization with offices in more than six countries.

A self-taught designer and illustrator, Jess began her creative career at a small branding agency in western Massachusetts called IdeaCo., before moving to New York City. There, she worked with clients such as Spotify, Aetna, Apollo, and Brooklyn Magazine. Jess discovered her love for editorial design while leading the Brooklyn Magazine redesign. This magazine centered around creating playful, illustrative, and distinct spreads that reflected the eclectic nature of Brooklyn. Since then, Jess has aimed to incorporate a more human touch into her work, experimenting with hand drawn elements and textures, and leaning into the whimsical imperfections that bring warmth to her projects. Jess is driven by the belief that no matter the brief, there is always room to push the envelope and create compelling work.

What principles guide your design decisions?

My work is guided by a few principles. Always answer the brief but also present a direction that pushes the creative bounds of what a client might be expecting. Confining yourself to online inspiration can limit your designs and get you caught in a trend spiral. Inspiration often comes from stepping away from screens. Books, architecture, doodles, and letting yourself be bored will help stretch your creativity. It’s important to distinguish what’s trendy from what feels timeless or uniquely lasting and which of those buckets your project fits into. And above all, the work can’t be treated too precious; iteration is a huge part of the process, and each round of refinement moves the idea toward a clearer, more meaningful solution.

What trend do you think the industry is overvaluing – and one it’s overlooking?

The industry is overvaluing hyper-polished, algorithm-driven aesthetics — designs that follow the same trending styles, palettes, and layouts because they perform well on social feeds. This creates a sameness that prioritizes quick validation over meaningful originality. What’s being overlooked is more exploratory creativity: tactile inspiration and ideas that come from observation rather than optimization. There’s a growing hunger for work that feels human, and isn’t chasing the moment, but aiming for something lasting.