I am Kathryn Samson, a graphic designer with 30 years’ experience, including 20 years as an independent freelancer. I’ve built a diverse client base largely through recommendations and pride myself on an intuitive understanding of a client’s brand, positioning, and needs when briefed. I collaborate with individuals, in-house design teams, and marketing and buying departments across arts organisations, charities, education trusts, schools, universities, event organisers, museums, retailers, and publishing companies. I guide projects from brief through proposals, pitches, and concept development to production and handover to print, including art direction, briefing photographers and illustrators, sourcing props, models, and locations.…

Kathryn Samson

I am Kathryn Samson, a graphic designer with 30 years’ experience, including 20 years as an independent freelancer. I’ve built a diverse client base largely through recommendations and pride myself on an intuitive understanding of a client’s brand, positioning, and needs when briefed. I collaborate with individuals, in-house design teams, and marketing and buying departments across arts organisations, charities, education trusts, schools, universities, event organisers, museums, retailers, and publishing companies. I guide projects from brief through proposals, pitches, and concept development to production and handover to print, including art direction, briefing photographers and illustrators, sourcing props, models, and locations.…

Available to hire

I am Kathryn Samson, a graphic designer with 30 years’ experience, including 20 years as an independent freelancer. I’ve built a diverse client base largely through recommendations and pride myself on an intuitive understanding of a client’s brand, positioning, and needs when briefed.

I collaborate with individuals, in-house design teams, and marketing and buying departments across arts organisations, charities, education trusts, schools, universities, event organisers, museums, retailers, and publishing companies. I guide projects from brief through proposals, pitches, and concept development to production and handover to print, including art direction, briefing photographers and illustrators, sourcing props, models, and locations.

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Language

English
Fluent
French
Intermediate
Italian
Intermediate

Work Experience

Freelance Graphic Designer at Kathryn Samson Graphic Design
April 1, 1997 - Present
Freelance graphic design since April 1997, with 30 years’ experience, including 20 years as an independent freelancer. Built a diverse client base largely through recommendations, developing an intuitive understanding of brand, positioning and client needs from briefing to final artwork. Collaborated with individuals, large organisations, in-house design teams, marketing and buying departments, and project/account managers. Managed end-to-end projects from brief, proposals, pitches, concept development, art direction, proofs, production, and handover to print. Briefed illustrators and photographers; provided art direction, sourcing props, models, and locations as needed.
Senior Designer at Visible Edge
July 1, 1993 - April 1, 1997
Worked closely with clients at every stage of projects. Clients included The Labour Party, GMB trade union, Chatham House, Laura Ashley, Early Learning Centre, Liberty, Divertimenti and The British Library. Contributed to catalogue work from conception through realisation, including art direction.
Junior Designer at Jenkins Group
September 1, 1991 - July 1, 1993
First design position; clients included British Airports Authority, Docklands Light Rail, Chartered Institute of Management Accountants and Care International.

Education

BA (Hons) Graphic Design (2.1) at Norwich School of Art
September 1, 1988 - July 1, 1991
Foundation course at Cleveland College of Art & Design
September 1, 1987 - July 1, 1988

Qualifications

Add your qualifications or awards here.

Industry Experience

Government, Consumer Goods, Education, Non-Profit Organization, Travel & Hospitality, Media & Entertainment, Professional Services, Retail
    uniE621 Schools Climate Summit – branding
    I was commissioned to design the branding and subsequent assets for the London Schools Climate Summit, part of London Climate Action Week. The brief asked for an exciting and inspiring logo. yet the clients had very little in the way of visuals, ahead of the inaugural London Schools Climate Summit. There was a desire to develop a brand that visually showed London in some way. The brief included the information that there are around 3,500 schools within London; nurseries, primary schools, secondary and independent, and the aim of the summit was to spur school leaders to act to reduce their carbon footprint. I was very intrigued by the idea that the 3,500 schools could be mapped and this could be developed as a route. I imagined that individual schools would be proud to literally be ‘on the map’, and acknowledged as playing a part in the combined environmental effort of all the schools. The chosen route illustrated the geographical position of the schools, using bright, overlapping primary colours, a different colour for each type of school, to depict the varied and diversity of London’s schools, as well as their connected nature. Participation by London schools was high, a key marker of the project’s success. I produced a set of assets including lesson plans that were downloaded many times during the week of the Climate Summit, and in the subsequent months. branding designer…
    uniE621 Schools Climate Summi – branding
    I was commissioned to design the branding and subsequent assets for the London Schools Climate Summit, part of London Climate Action Week. The brief asked for an exciting and inspiring logo. yet the clients had very little in the way of visuals, ahead of the inaugural London Schools Climate Summit. There was a desire to develop a brand that visually showed London in some way. The brief included the information that there are around 3,500 schools within London; nurseries, primary schools, secondary and independent, and the aim of the summit was to spur school leaders to act to reduce their carbon footprint. I was very intrigued by the idea that the 3,500 schools could be mapped and this could be developed as a route. I imagined that individual schools would be proud to literally be ‘on the map’, and acknowledged as playing a part in the combined environmental effort of all the schools. The chosen route illustrated the geographical position of the schools, using bright, overlapping primary colours, a different colour for each type of school, to depict the varied and diversity of London’s schools, as well as their connected nature. Participation by London schools was high, a key marker of the project’s success. I produced a set of assets including lesson plans that were downloaded many times during the week of the Climate Summit, and in the subsequent months. branding designer…
    uniE621 Schools Climate Summit – branding
    I was commissioned to design the branding and subsequent assets for the London Schools Climate Summit, part of London Climate Action Week. The brief asked for an exciting and inspiring logo. yet the clients had very little in the way of visuals, ahead of the inaugural London Schools Climate Summit. There was a desire to develop a brand that visually showed London in some way. The brief included the information that there are around 3,500 schools within London; nurseries, primary schools, secondary and independent, and the aim of the summit was to spur school leaders to act to reduce their carbon footprint. I was very intrigued by the idea that the 3,500 schools could be mapped and this could be developed as a route. I imagined that individual schools would be proud to literally be ‘on the map’, and acknowledged as playing a part in the combined environmental effort of all the schools. The chosen route illustrated the geographical position of the schools, using bright, overlapping primary colours, a different colour for each type of school, to depict the varied and diversity of London’s schools, as well as their connected nature. Participation by London schools was high, a key marker of the project’s success. I produced a set of assets including lesson plans that were downloaded many times during the week of the Climate Summit, and in the subsequent months. branding graphicdesigner…
    uniE621 Pidge – digital training app for personal trainers
    Project Overview Pidge is a health and fitness start-up. The word ‘Pidge’ is derived from the word for individual message boxes, or pigeon-holes, at university, and the original iteration of the app was developed for a sports’ team organisation. However, after some preliminary research, it was decided to focus on producing an app for personal trainers, making the admin aspects of coaching and exercise faster, simpler and easier to manage. The founders were very keen for Pidge to ‘become the NHS of fitness and sports’. Project Brief I was tasked with developing the UX/UI of the app which at the time was very rudimentary. However, as I became involved, it became clear that some key areas of research, including competitor analysis and user interviews. I identified areas where the product could be devloped and made more attractive and useful for potential customers. The founders also asked me to design a desktop-compatible website version of the app. digitalappdesign graphicdesigner ux ui…
    uniE621 UK Government – Specialist Skills guide
    The Government Campus works with professions to offer high-quality training to improve specialist skills across the Civil Service. I was commissioned to design a document that visually explained the Government Campus’ curriculum. The Executive Director of the Government Skills and Curriculum Unit said of the ‘Developing specialist skills within government’ piece: “It’s SUCH a brilliant product, it’s had the most universally resoundingly positive feedback from everyone I have shared it with, at all levels – people adore it and want to use it in their own team, department, profession and 1-1 conversations, about skills development, clarity, precision, accessibility, career pathways.” graphicdesigner illustrator branding designer…
    uniE621 Global Action Plan – impact report
    In Autumn 2022, I was commissioned by Global Action Plan to design their first public-facing report, celebrating and showcasing the key achievements they had made through projects during the year. The primary audience was: Prospective funders – Corporate/private sector businesses, local authorities and philanthropists The secondary audiences was: Prospective employees and existing funders graphicdesigner branding…
    paper Global Action Plan – charity rebrand
    Global Action Plan are a 25-year-old organisation with a proven track record of well-respected behaviour change programmes – helping people reduce their environmental impact through easy, practical steps. The brief: To position Global Action Plan (GAP) as the leading behaviour change organisation in the environmental sector. To establish GAP as the source of groundbreaking projects built on the premise that there is an environmental and a personal benefit brought by the proposed behaviour change. To clearly establish GAP’s connection proposition in the minds of funders and supporters. ‘Connecting what is good for us and what is good for the planet’ was my starting point. With a need to appeal to young people, I was keen that the new brand avoided the visual clichés that have been used in the environmental sector. My initial concepts were reviewed by the charity’s stakeholders, including their youth panel, with the chosen route deemed ‘smart, neat and elegant’. graphicdesigner branding…
    uniE608 Nederlandse Spoorwegen – explainer video
    I was commissioned by filmmaker Graham Higgins to design some motion graphics sequences as part of an explainer video for a digital product developed for Nederlandse Spoorwegen. I visited Nederlandse Spoorwegen’ offices with Graham in Utrecht to help him film interviews of key staff members, and also to gain a better understanding of the product. This helped me to develop the short sequences. explainervideo…
    uniE608 Nederlandse Spoorwegen – explainer video
    I was commissioned by filmmaker Graham Higgins to design some motion graphics sequences as part of an explainer video for a digital product developed for Nederlandse Spoorwegen. I visited Nederlandse Spoorwegen’ offices with Graham in Utrecht to help him film interviews of key staff members, and also to gain a better understanding of the product. This helped me to develop the short sequences. explainervideo…
    uniE621 UK Civil Service – prospectus
    In June 2022, at the height of the pandemic, I was commissioned to design a prospectus, setting out the Government Curriculum and Skills Unit’s plans to increase and broaden the training available to civil servants at all levels and career stages. graphicdesigner branding designer brochuredesign…