Dongkyu
Lee

What led you into design?

I didn’t initially consider myself interested in design or think about attending art school until after I graduated from high school. However, I remember that I really loved typography. As a younger version of myself, I was mesmerized by the diverse shapes, roundness, and heights of letters from around the world, each expressing its own unique identity. At the time, I didn’t know the term “typography,” so I often referred to them as “letters” or “fonts,” like most people do.

I even bought a Hangul font from an online Korean font marketplace, which I still have on my computer. This font became the unconscious starting point of my design journey. It led me to discover that there is a major called Graphic Design and Typography at art school. This discovery led me to pursue graphic design. I prepared a portfolio and was accepted into School of Visual Arts in New York City. In retrospect, it was a bold move, especially since I hadn’t prepared for an art-related major while in Korea. But in the end, it turned out to be a great decision.

I’ve also always loved animation and the craft of movie title sequences. Back then, I didn’t think they were directly related to design, but now I realize they have heavily influenced my design taste, particularly in prototyping and interactions. The dynamic visuals and storytelling techniques inspired me to incorporate motion and interactivity into my own design work.

What does a typical day look like?

Like many other designers, an important start to my day starts with a good cup of coffee! One of the first things I do is check any notifications I muted the night before and read some of my favorite design newsletters and sites. From there, most of the day is focused on my project work; at Work & Co the design approach is about fewer formal meetings.

This allows me to spend most of the day in heads-down mode, focusing on designing. In the daily meeting, the team and I share our design progress, provide feedback, and discuss any issues related to the projects we’re working on. After the meeting, I dive into working on prototypes, updating designs, or exploring new ideas and concepts.

After work, my activities are more varied. Sometimes I spend time learning a new tool or watching TV shows that people have been talking about. Other times, I engage in personal design explorations that could lead to potential new ideas, or I simply go for a walk. Recently, I bought a new iPad Pro with an Apple Pencil, so I’ve been spending some time playing around with it.

What's your workstation setup?

Where do you go to get inspired?

I get inspired by random things from anywhere and any place. It could be the internet, a provocative title of a book I recently read, art, Wikipedia, the gradient of a red to purple sunset, a random article I stumble upon, YouTube videos suggested by the algorithm, or TV shows. I love the unexpected moments when I find something really fresh and new that inspires me and teaches me something.

I also spend a lot of time looking at work from our industry, especially in branding and motion graphics. As a product designer, I feel refreshed and inspired when I see art direction, lettering, type designs, and brand identities. That’s why I love visiting UnderConsideration—Brand New I’ve been visiting this site since I was in college and really love their podcast series as well.

As I mentioned, I love title sequences and motion graphics—something that made me satisfied when I saw unique and fun transitions and editing. This is something that I’ve loved even before I started my design journey. Sometimes I just rewind a specific part over and over so that I can understand how it works.

What product have you recently seen that made you think this is great design?

I love the new advanced voice mode in ChatGPT. Its minimalistic circular interface with a watercolor aesthetic of sky or wave adds a fresh and optimistic feel to AI voice interactions. The simple and subtle design and motion make the experience more engaging. Beyond the advanced voice mode, I also appreciate the subtle yet detailed execution and motion of the ChatGPT app overall.

What pieces of work are you most proud of?

One recent piece of work I’m most proud of is not a launch as much as it is a look inside my design process in an article called Transition animations–A practical guide. It’s about introducing key principles to make better transition animations in the product design process. Since a product’s flow involves moving from one state to another, these transitions are important feedback for people who use it. I’ve been thinking a lot about what makes great products, and this is one of the answers I’ve found. I’ve really loved prototyping since I started working professionally. This article gave me an opportunity to document my key learnings based on my extensive prototyping experience—what constitutes good transitions and some basic yet essential knowledge in this area. In some ways crafting this piece was a project in and of itself, as I sorted out the key principles to ideating and designing the examples that appeared in the article, prototyping, and exploring art directions.

Another project I’m proud to have worked on here at Work & Co is Steve Jobs Archive. It’s the authoritative home for Steve’s story, and the mission of the project is to offer people the tools and opportunities to make their own contributions to the world, building programs, fellowships, collections, and partnerships that reflect Steve’s values and carry his sense of possibility forward. As a designer who grew up admiring Apple products, I can’t express how excited I was. I’m really proud that I participated and contributed to this project.

What music do you listen to while designing?

Any advice for ambitious designers?

Explore a lot! There’s always a different way to try. Some of the work I’m most proud of came from endless explorations until it felt ‘just right.’

Pay attention to detail and craft. While this might sound like a designer cliché, it truly helps. This focus allows you to see the world in a different way and become a better designer.

Don’t overthink—just start creating and keep iterating.

Anything you want to promote or plug?

I have my website, where you’ll find some fun animations like the rotating flower—which represents my last name—and more. Feel free to connect with me on LinkedIn or shoot me an email!

Also, my design article Transition animations–A practical guide. In there, I’ve also added a bunch of great resources below, highly recommend checking out!