Tiago Vaz
Senior Art Director
I grew up in Porto and, as an only child, I found creative ways to occupy my days. I always enjoyed drawing, but it was with graffiti that I finally found an outlet and a community for my artistic interests. I studied arts in high school and went on to university to study Communication Design. At first my idea was to become a book illustrator, and I thought Communication Design would be the most useful degree for that goal. The truth is, I enjoyed the graphic design universe far too much, and that became my main interest.
I was still in university when I entered a design competition open to the top design universities in the country, and won. One of the prizes was a paid internship abroad, which is how I ended up in advertising in Germany. I never left. What started as an internship turned into years working on global campaigns for some of the world's biggest brands, learning, mostly the hard way, how far a single idea can be pushed when you're willing to see it through yourself.
In 2018 I went independent, and I've been building on that ever since: taking on the kind of work that lets me be the concept, the design, and the execution, all in one hand. It let me keep working as a freelancer on crazy, exciting, high-paced campaigns with advertising agencies, but it also let me go back to my roots and work in the graphic design world once more, and to pursue my own illustration and art with a bit more intent. That side of me goes by Uzo. Uzo World is where you can see what I've been up to. Just flip the toggle to After Hours and have a look around.
I still call the Frankfurt area home, still don't speak much German (I knowwwww, it's about time…), and still get excited about pretty much everything: a poster, a logo, a mural, a technique, an illustration, or a fucking ad that should have been my idea.
Recognition
- Picked up 1st place in a competition for a mascot design, back in my university's first year.
- Won a national student design competition, open to the top design universities in the country, redesigning the packaging for one of Portugal's most iconic tobacco brands.
- Contributing illustrator on a Clio Sport Bronze.
- Some of the campaigns I helped with during my time as a freelancer also won advertising awards, but by the nature of the business, I can't take credit for them.
Agencies
Leo Burnett · Zerotwonine · Scholz & Friends · MRM McCann · Pink Carrots · Baum & Garten · Spark44 · Innocean · GK Film AG · CPP Studios · M.I.L.K.
Languages
- English — Fluent · working language
- Portuguese — Native
- German — Conversational, in progress
Contact
hello@tiagovaz.com