// career highlights

the story so far.

Thanks for taking a chance on an unfamiliar name. If you’re reading this, you’re probably looking at quite a few job applicants, so I’ll do my best to make this worth your time.

I’m Raihan Sangherra, a multi-disciplinary graphic designer born in London and raised in Vancouver. I earned my Bachelor’s Degree in Graphic Design for Marketing from the Wilson School of Design at Kwantlen, where I was one of only two students accepted straight out of high school. It was here that I discovered a love of logos, creative copywriting, and airtight design systems.

My design career began as an intern at the award-winning Herrainco (now Ion Design), followed by a short gig at Science World with Carolina Becerra. Her positive reference led me to Gonzalo Alatorre at Creative Engine, where I worked briefly as a Communication Designer.

designing systems

My skillset was missing some production experience, so I joined the small team at Cornerstone Signage & Design as a Graphic Designer in 2016. The studio featured on-site fabrication and printing, which provided a tangible sense of how my design decisions affected the final product. Working with a variety of printing methods, substrates, and third-party suppliers was crucial in bringing our wayfinding and donor recognition systems to life.

In addition to design and production, we consultanted on Royal Columbian Hospital’s redevelopment project. I wrote a comprehensive best practices document which stressed the importance of modular, user-focused signage in healthcare. It also advised on best practices for gender inclusive and accessible designs.

My time at Cornerstone was an intense, but profoundly valuable bootcamp for applying the principles of spatial design. The resulting projects included some of BC’s busiest hospitals and the Vancouver Public Library’s iconic downtown branch.

designing experiences

With a newfound appreciation for environmental graphic design, I joined the brilliant minds at Immersive Tech. The studio focused on innovative exhibits, marketing pop-ups, and mobile escape rooms. When I’m not working, I’m engrossed by films, immersive theatre, and game design, which made me a perfect fit.

Company culture is so important to me. As soon as I found myself in a leadership position I took it upon myself to ensure the company had more equality, creativity, and collaboration. Along with hiring more women, I setup an R&D field trip with the Science World team, started company-wide “creative-innovation” sessions, took teams to events like PechaKucha, and even started a weekly movie club. On the production side, I worked with a project manager to fully transition the company project management system from Basecamp to Asana, which greatly increased efficiency and collaboration.

From concept to installation, I managed teams of game designers, programmers, artists, and fabricators to ensure we worked with a unified vision. I have a generalist’s approach to design problems, so acting as a liaison between these disparate groups came very naturally to me.

Our wildly ambitious projects included an “underwater” lab for Bayer, a micro-budget morgue at the X-Games, and a mobile space command for Capitol One.

Unfortunately, in early 2020 the desire for in-person marketing pop-ups and escape rooms would grind to a halt…

human-centered design

My most recent position is at Farmboy Fine Arts as a Jr. Art Director. Farmboy is an art consultancy that leverages artist partnerships and environmental graphics to create gorgeous hospitality and workplace interiors. At each location, they strive to empower local artists and tell stories with art that challenges traditional narratives.

With my background in branding and diverse applications of design, I was brought on as Farmboy began their largest project to date, the complete refresh of artwork and environment graphics for the Ford Motor Company. My first task was to designing custom artwork for CEO Jim Farley’s personal office, no pressure right?

Following that, I established new design standards for environmental graphics for Ford’s offices and retail locations. I was fortunate enough to have access to the company’s massive archive, a treasure trove of photography, unused concept sketches, and internal publications. Using Farmboy’s artist partners, I created new pieces that remixed the past with the present. The guiding artwork narrative was “a future of mobility, the environment, and our shared humanity”. It was a truly unique experience as a designer.

In 2022 our work on the Ford Experience Center helped to win Interior Design’s Best of the Year award for “Office Transformation”. I’ve continued to work on Ford projects, but now also work with clients in the hospitality sector, such as Hilton and Marriot.

okay, so why me?

In short, my career’s “scenic route” has resulted in a unique opportunity to develop and maintain a multi-disciplinary skillset. The ability to lead a project with a holistic vision while paying attention to specific contexts is crucial to ensuring its success.

“Raihan is an outstanding Art Director, Designer, and creative thinker. His unique background and blend of artistic talent, conceptual thinking, and innovation have consistently delivered exceptional results. Raihan excels in creating strong narratives and executing visually striking solutions committed to pushing creative ideas and boundaries. Raihan is a collaborative team player and a great colleague. His contributions have significantly impacted our organization and I know Raihan will be a great addition to any creative team.”
Laurenn Machin
Creative Director, Farmboy

Thanks for taking the time to read this. If you’re interested in seeing what my diverse array of experiences can bring to your studio, please get in touch. If not, feel free to connect on LinkedIn while you mull it over.

Cheers,
Raihan Sangherra

design experience(s)

Resumé