Yijia Xie is a visual designer, creative coder and futurist based in New York City. Before she discovered her passion for art and design, Yijia’s first love was reading books on ancient Egyptian history, archaeology and science fiction. Being able to connect to the cosmos through a historical lens inspired her childhood dream to become an astronomer and archaeologist. While studying psychology at the University of Washington, Seattle, Yijia stumbled on an art class, which later kick started her creative journey. That experience gave her enough confidence to move to NYC and study design at the School of Visual Arts, where she met Jessica Walsh, one of her professors, who became her mentor and role model.
From there Yijia started her career path, initially interning at Sagmeister&Walsh, then becoming a graphic designer at &Walsh, and now as a brand designer at IBM Research. Yijia continues to explore the world around her through design. She combines interests that date back to her childhood (futurism, spiritual journeys, history and technology) with generative art tools and AI to create beautiful and thoughtful experiments.
We caught up with Yijia to hear more about her experience transitioning from &Walsh to IBM Research, her approach to design and generative art, and why she believes the future of design is now.
Can you tell us about your design practice and how it has evolved throughout your career so far?
Firstly, I’m very honoured to receive an invitation from Design by Women. I should say that as a kid I never imagined myself as a designer or an artist until I got to college. When I was young I was fascinated by the universe, science fiction, history, and archaeology. I would spend my nights thinking about what is beyond the stars. Also, I love reading books on subjects such as ancient Egyptian history. I felt as though I could connect to ancient wisdom through the words and pictures in the book. I always wanted to be an astronomer or an archaeologist.
I went to the University of Washington intending to major in psychology but also took some classes in archaeology. I love psychology, but I couldn’t help but think about what I would do in the future. I’m too emotional and empathetic, and others’ misfortunes often sadden me. Could I be a good counsellor with these qualities? I happened to take an art class during my time in college with an instructor who didn’t like me much at first, perhaps due to cultural differences, and I felt discriminated against. However, as I created more and more artworks in class, I could feel her attitude slowly changing and her appreciation for me growing. At the end of that semester, I received a transcript with the sentence: “You’re the most talented student I’ve ever met.” I knew I had won her respect. It gave me a lot of confidence to pursue my art studies. I realized that good art could transcend nationalities and cultures. Also, as an artist or designer, I found that my sensibility and empathy fuel my creativity. So, I decided to move to New York City, the world’s art and cultural capital, to begin my design studies and career. My childhood love of history, archaeology, and the universe have always deeply influenced me as a designer.
Completed at &Walsh © CREATIVE/ART DIRECTION: Jessica Walsh | DESIGN: Matteo Pani, Gabriela Namie, Angela Iannarelli, Rachel Denti, Yijia Xie | PHOTOGRAPHY: Henry Hargreaves | PRODUCTION: Erica Grubman
What were the main things you learned from your time at &Walsh and how have they applied to what you’re doing now at IBM Research?
It’s a good question. One of the most important things I learned at &Walsh is how to use style to create unique works. Aesthetic ability is a very delicate subject. What exactly constitutes an aesthetic style is debatable, but there is no denying that we resonate with certain visual types. Aesthetic style is essential in design because our first impression of almost anything is based on how it appears. Compared to other design competencies or standards, aesthetic taste is a long-term process that must be developed over time and requires continuous, immersive training.
Working in a fast-paced work environment at &Walsh, I learned a lot from the world’s top designers and Jessica Walsh, who is always full of thoughtful, and practical ideas. My brain is constantly processing and optimizing all kinds of aesthetic design information and thinking about how to create more inspiring works. These experiences will significantly impact my future career and allow me to have more faith in my design intuition. When I joined IBM Research, the team wanted to differentiate IBM Research from the crowd of homogenized technology brands by making it more modern, fresh, and innovative. My daily work is to combine aesthetics and technology, creating impressive and meaningful visual content.
“Working in a fast-paced work environment at &Walsh, I learned a lot from the world’s top designers and Jessica Walsh, who is always full of thoughtful, and practical ideas. My brain is constantly processing and optimizing all kinds of aesthetic design information and thinking about how to create more inspiring works.”
Have you experienced any challenges while making the job/industry switch? If so, how have you overcome them?
When I worked at the agency, I got briefs from different clients. Then I would produce creative work based on the client’s needs. Whereas working in an in-house team, I rarely have such briefs and I usually find the design needs by myself or by asking other team members if they need help. So actually, it’s more important to stick to my perspective and concentrate on improving my presentational skills and selling the ideas. Even though I am not a native English speaker, I push myself to be brave and express myself.
Completed at IBM Research – Lead Designer: Yijia Xie
What’s the collaborative process been like while working with scientists and engineers? Have there been any learning curves?
At IBM Research, I work closely with the scientists and researchers to promote the latest technologies through meaningful and narrative design. At first, all the scientific knowledge was too hard for me to understand, and I had to spend huge amounts of time figuring out what was going on, usually by researching online or asking some experts. As time has gone on, I am able to get useful information more quickly, so I’m able to spend more time on creative work and new design techniques.
What do you find most challenging about being a designer in your field?
I would say: ‘Carving your own path.’ I want to share my real story: I decided to pursue a design career initially because I thought I was good at it. The confusion and self-doubt I felt at the beginning of my career came from knowing that while I enjoyed design, I also felt that I lacked a strong passion for it. Whenever I saw other passionate designers, I always felt like an outsider in the design world. I struggled with that feeling for years.
Luckily, I didn’t give up. I persisted and found peace with my inner self. Eventually, I realised that design is not only a tool that I use to make a living but could also be a tool to explore the world. I had a million wild ideas running through my head every day, and as a designer, I could show them to others visually. How cool is that! As soon as I realized this , I developed a deep enthusiasm for design and constantly invented new things. In the process, I became a self-described ‘design nerd.’ In answer to the question: the most challenging thing for me has been to ‘discover and to be myself.’
“I realised that design is not only a tool that I use to make a living but could also be a tool to explore the world. I had a million wild ideas running through my head every day, and as a designer, I could show them to others visually.”
Do you have any words of advice or resources to share for those who are interested in getting into generative and algorithm art?
People have been asking me a lot lately how to make ‘cool’ generative arts. First, I would say that ‘ideas’ are always more important than ‘techniques’. Also, love is the best way to learn. I would suggest that people should start with personal projects and then think about how to make them happen using the emerging technologies. Instead of just doing some ‘cool’ work, I encourage people to work on things they are passionate about to gain inspiration and motivation.
We love your Computational Meditation personal project. Could you tell us more about it and why you started it?
The story behind this ‘AI Meditation’ project goes back to the pandemic, which was a massive trauma for me. During the lockdown I lived alone in a small apartment in Brooklyn. Experiencing huge anxiety and uncertainty, I longed for inner peace. I got into generative art by chance and this new territory immediately ignited my interest. I started to teach myself frantically through programming courses online. I realized that Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, and computing had expanded my design mind infinitely. These technologies brought me hope as a human being suffering from the fears and constraints of the pandemic era.
In addition to studying and creating, I also did a lot of meditation and slowly healed my mental health. I am on the way to reconciling with myself. I decided to start this project since both ‘AI’ and ‘meditation’ became the sanctuary for my soul during those difficult days. The world outside is turbulent, but I found beautiful peace in the space of programming. I’m creating a series of joyful AI-generated videos for meditation purposes. I know it’s frustrating that we can barely make a difference as individuals to things happening in this world, but at least I could do something for myself and others who feel like me.
“During the lockdown I lived alone in a small apartment in Brooklyn. Experiencing huge anxiety and uncertainty, I longed for inner peace. I got into generative art by chance and this new territory immediately ignited my interest.”
You’ve worked on a few personal projects. How important are they to your practice?
My personal projects allow me to explore my inner universe and demonstrate the dialogue with my inner self. I don’t want to be defined by a particular style. I’ve recently worked on personal project about ‘Chinese characters’: I combined creative coding and design tools to create type animations expressing my understanding of Chinese culture. You may find that the style of this project differs greatly from that of my ‘computational meditation’ project. Still, the essence is the same: Design is a medium for me to discover and explore specific topics that I always care about, such as futurism, spiritual journey, history, and technology. Also, I wish to show others a diverse, sincere, and vital part of myself when experiencing my work.
Where do you think the design industry is heading in the next five years, and how will you adapt?
The future is here. I’m glad that designers are getting more opportunities as the creative economy grows. I believe that in 5 years, design tools will change dramatically. With more rational work done by AI, designers will get to dive deep into developing conceptual and creative ideas. And regardless of how technology advances, the skill of storytelling will always be in demand.
Completed at IBM Research – Lead Designer: Yijia Xie
Do you have any women role models or mentors who have shaped your career?
I don’t have an idol or anyone I aspire to be other than myself. But if I had to name one woman who has had the most significant impact on my career, it would undoubtedly be Jessica Walsh.
During my junior year at SVA, I was fortunate enough to be one of Jessica Walsh’s students. I still remember the day after our junior year’s final class ended. On a Saturday morning, I received an email from Jessica asking if I would be interested in working as their summer intern. I can’t express how surprised I was because I had never imagined having such a wonderful opportunity until then. Throughout my career, I’ve always been so grateful to her. Every day I studied and worked with Jessica, I was amazed. She is one of the most inspiring, brilliant, and hard-working people I have ever met.