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Education is an opportunity for everyone according to Byron Jiapeng Ho studying Bachelor of Design (Hons) Professional Design (Visual Communication).
He recently participated in the ACA (Adobe Certified Associate) Championship Malaysia 2016 and won third place.
The ACA Championship is a global competition that tests students’ design skills in Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign. Contestants had to design a poster for a campaign themed ‘Ending Poverty through Empowerment’.
This campaign aims to evoke empathy and awareness for the need to empower rural youths. These posters encourage the public to support the cause through donations and fundraising activities.
Participants were given a real world scenario whereby they had to create designs by using Adobe programmes such as Photoshop, InDesign and Illustrator. They would have to design an A3 poster artwork for their clients to generate support for the cause in a professional work environment.
The competition is also part of a campaign by Project T.R.Y to raise awareness and eradicate poverty through youth empowerment.
Byron designed his artwork which features a pencil drawn to appear as a rocket ship flying into space. His artwork portrays the message that everyone has the power to gain knowledge regardless of their background.
“I used one pencil to represent that education is not expensive,” he said. “It also encourages them to release their creative potential.”
He explains that the humble pencil represents ‘simplicity’ whereby creativity can be expressed through any medium. His artwork conveys to the audience that poverty is not an obstacle to educational opportunities.
“Everyone can use everything at their disposal to create opportunities for themselves,” he added.
The competition enabled him to meet other designers and industry players while expanding his network opportunities in the creative industry.
“You meet people from big companies such as Adobe,” he said. “It was a chance to gain more exposure and experience.”
He emphasised the importance of keeping a positive and optimistic mind-set during competitions. He had previously competed in two other events such as the Petron Contest and the TMS contest.
Limkokwing University encourages students to participate in contests, exhibition and competitions. The University’s multicultural learning approach enables graduates to gain professional experience and develop industry network as part of their educational programme.
