I am a driven, adaptable Creative Director / Art Director / Digital Designer with 20+ years’ experience delivering creative and innovative work across digital, print, motion/video, and interactive media for leading South African and international brands and agencies. I have a strong track record in taking projects from initial brief and discovery workshops through concept development, production, and final delivery, ensuring outcomes are effective, on-brand, and delivered within agreed timelines. My background spans both above- and below-the-line work, giving me the range to lead high-level creative direction while still being hands-on when required. I am experienced in building and maintaining brand alignment across multiple channels and formats, translating brand strategy into clear visual systems that work consistently across campaign work, product experiences, and communication assets. I’m comfortable collaborating with and leading multi-disciplinary teams and suppliers—working closely with copywriters, designers, photographers, illustrators, account teams, 3D artists, video production crews, web developers, and print partners—and I bring a calm, structured approach to delivery in fast-paced environments. My work style is detail-driven and practical, focused on making creative output easy to understand, easy to execute, and strong in real-world performance, not just conceptually appealing.

Layo Ray

I am a driven, adaptable Creative Director / Art Director / Digital Designer with 20+ years’ experience delivering creative and innovative work across digital, print, motion/video, and interactive media for leading South African and international brands and agencies. I have a strong track record in taking projects from initial brief and discovery workshops through concept development, production, and final delivery, ensuring outcomes are effective, on-brand, and delivered within agreed timelines. My background spans both above- and below-the-line work, giving me the range to lead high-level creative direction while still being hands-on when required. I am experienced in building and maintaining brand alignment across multiple channels and formats, translating brand strategy into clear visual systems that work consistently across campaign work, product experiences, and communication assets. I’m comfortable collaborating with and leading multi-disciplinary teams and suppliers—working closely with copywriters, designers, photographers, illustrators, account teams, 3D artists, video production crews, web developers, and print partners—and I bring a calm, structured approach to delivery in fast-paced environments. My work style is detail-driven and practical, focused on making creative output easy to understand, easy to execute, and strong in real-world performance, not just conceptually appealing.

Available to hire

I am a driven, adaptable Creative Director / Art Director / Digital Designer with 20+ years’ experience delivering creative and innovative work across digital, print, motion/video, and interactive media for leading South African and international brands and agencies. I have a strong track record in taking projects from initial brief and discovery workshops through concept development, production, and final delivery, ensuring outcomes are effective, on-brand, and delivered within agreed timelines.

My background spans both above- and below-the-line work, giving me the range to lead high-level creative direction while still being hands-on when required. I am experienced in building and maintaining brand alignment across multiple channels and formats, translating brand strategy into clear visual systems that work consistently across campaign work, product experiences, and communication assets. I’m comfortable collaborating with and leading multi-disciplinary teams and suppliers—working closely with copywriters, designers, photographers, illustrators, account teams, 3D artists, video production crews, web developers, and print partners—and I bring a calm, structured approach to delivery in fast-paced environments. My work style is detail-driven and practical, focused on making creative output easy to understand, easy to execute, and strong in real-world performance, not just conceptually appealing.

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Language

English
Fluent

Work Experience

Director (Creative Direction, PM, Admin & Finance) at Consulting / Freelance International
October 1, 2019 - Present
Deliver UX/UI, web design, brand alignment, content design, storyboards, motion graphics, and video production for a range of industries. Lead projects end-to-end from briefing through discovery, workshops, planning, vendor coordination, execution, and final delivery. Translate complex requirements into clear, intuitive interfaces and visual systems while maintaining brand consistency.
UX/UI Front-end Design, Animation, Interactive Visualisation (Contract) at IBM Research Africa
July 1, 2018 - Present
Continued work in UX/UI and interactive visualization, with a focus on sustaining brand standards and delivering compelling demos for research themes.
Director | SA Branch Founder (Creative Direction, Strategy, PM) at EVENTAGRATE (Pty) Ltd
June 1, 2018 - September 1, 2019
Founded and launched the South African branch; led operations, strategy, recruitment, new business, and delivery. Directed creative output across marketing, product demos, UX/UI concepts, 3D assets, and pitch materials. Managed internal/external resources using Agile/Scrum + Design Thinking approaches.
UX/UI Front-end Designer, Animation, Interactive Visualisation at IBM Research Africa
April 1, 2016 - May 31, 2018
Produced UX/UI and interactive demos supporting research initiatives; ensured alignment to corporate brand standards. Designed and built interactive experiences using Unity, including multi-touch interface concepts and advanced UI flows. Developed configurable visual tools to support work flow and discovery across domains (healthcare, smarter cities, air quality). Delivered supporting collateral: dashboards, infographics, presentations, motion/video, print, and event materials. Later continued in July 2018 as part-time/contract.
UX/UI Front-end Design, Animation, Interactive Visualisation at IBM Research Africa
April 1, 2016 - May 1, 2018
Produced UX/UI and interactive demos supporting research initiatives; ensured alignment to corporate brand standards. Designed and built interactive experiences using Unity, including multi-touch interface concepts and advanced UI flows. Developed configurable visual tools to support workflow and discovery across domains (e.g., healthcare, smarter cities, air quality). Delivered dashboards, infographics, presentations, motion/video, print, and event materials.
Creative Department Head Designer (Contract) at PARTNER DIRECT
November 1, 2015 - March 1, 2016
Led concept-to-delivery work across CID, packaging, digital marketing assets, interactive presentations, web content, and campaign collateral for enterprise clients.
Co-Founder | Creative Director | Senior Designer at VECTOR ORANGE
September 1, 2014 - October 1, 2015
Led art direction, product UX/UI, and marketing for custom software tools; directed multidisciplinary production across design, 3D, video, and client delivery; developed interactive multi-touch concepts and branded experiential work.
Senior Graphic Designer | R&D / Marketing at BOOGERTMAN+PARTNERS
September 1, 2010 - August 1, 2014
Led design and production of tender documents, publications, coffee-table books, interactive presentations, CID, signage/wayfinding, and brand-consistent systems across contributors; introduced modern media approaches including AR exploration and mobile/iOS initiatives.
Art Director | Senior Graphic Designer at XDSL WEB
September 1, 2008 - August 1, 2010
Delivered web design and digital campaign assets; supported client liaison and account management; produced video marketing edits, motion elements, and digital collateral for rollout.
Founder | Creative Director | Senior Graphic Designer at THE BORN KREATIVE
June 1, 2005 - August 1, 2010
Ran agency operations and led delivery across digital, print, branding, and video from concept to rollout; managed workflows, budgets, schedules, and cross-functional collaborators.
Freelance Designer/Manager/Event Coordinator at Various
January 1, 2004 - December 31, 2005
Provided freelance design and event coordination services, delivering across digital, print, and branding projects for diverse clients.
Freelance Designer/Manager/Event Coordinator at Independent / Freelance
January 1, 2004 - January 1, 2005
Provided design and project management services for various clients, coordinating events and creative outputs across disciplines.
Senior/Junior Roles at Mad Advertising
January 1, 2002 - December 31, 2003
Early career exposure across advertising design and production.
Mad Advertising at Mad Advertising
January 1, 2002 - January 1, 2003
Role focused on design and campaign production for clients, contributing to digital and print deliverables.
Intern at The Hurricane Room
January 1, 2001 - January 1, 2002
Internship contributing to design, production, and collaboration on projects.
Prod Assistant/Storyboard at Ike Productions
January 1, 2000 - December 31, 2000
Supported production workflows with storyboard development and production assistance.
Production Assistant / Storyboard at Ike Productions
January 1, 2000 - January 1, 2000
Supported production and storyboard tasks, assisting in concept development and visual planning.

Education

Diploma in Visual Communication at The Open Window Art Academy
January 1, 1999 - January 1, 2000
Diploma in Visual Communication at Ruth Prouse Academy of Art, Cape Town
January 1, 2000 - January 1, 2001
Certificate/ Deploma at CALARTS
December 17, 2025 - December 17, 2025
UI/UX specialisations (incl. CalArts modules)

Qualifications

IBM Design Thinking (Foundation + Practitioner)
January 11, 2030 - December 17, 2025
Agile/Scrum
January 11, 2030 - December 17, 2025
UI/UX Specialisations (CalArts modules)
January 11, 2030 - December 17, 2025
Unity/C# learning
January 11, 2030 - December 17, 2025
iOS App publishing exposure (Registered Apple Developer)
January 11, 2030 - December 17, 2025

Industry Experience

Media & Entertainment, Professional Services, Software & Internet, Retail, Education, Other