CO-FOUNDER
ONIKI
NEW YORK NY
Jiayue Li is a graphic designer, artist and illustrator from Chengdu, China, based in New York. Her passion lies in creating narratives using graphic design, illustration, and art direction. She is the co-founder of creative agency Oniki, based in New York and Istanbul. Focusing on strategy, branding, and communications, the firm partners with cultural and commercial clients around the world who value purposeful design and meaningful stories.
Her clients have included Pfizer, The New Yorker, Bon Appétit, Vogue Singapore, Google, Thom Browne, The Baffler, Alipay, etc.
Jiayue is a graduate of the College of Design and Innovation, Tongji University in Shanghai, and the MFA Design Entrepreneurship program of the School of Visual Arts in New York. She created illustrations for renowned magazines globally, and her work has been recognized by prominent publications. In addition, Jiayue’s work has been exhibited at in numerous art galleries. And she was shortlisted in the 2021 ADC 100th Annual Awards and 2021 Communication Arts Illustration Competition. Her graphic design work got the 2020 Graphis Design Annual, Honorable Mention, and 2019 Graphis Design Annual, Gold Award.
Looking forward, are you optimistic about the role of graphic design in business and society?
Graphic design plays a very important role in every aspect of life and influences the way people look at the world. I’m sure the business of graphic design will grow very fast in the future as the growing economy requires more and more designers to brand emerging startups and campaigns. Graphic design is also crucial for communication in cultural events and social causes.
Have the challenges of the past two years changed the way you approach your work?
Yes, I think the past two years’ pandemic changed a lot of things in the graphic design working environment. I’m more and more used to working and communicating online and have picked up many online collaborative working platforms.
