30 Jun Meet Yanique DaCosta, Southern Region’s Candidate for Representative!
There’s a strong wind blowing from the South… We’re delighted to announce another candidate for regional representative, designer and fine artist Yanique DaCosta. DaCosta first came on our radar when she enthusiastically agreed to participate on a number of our member outreach initiatives, and her energy and drive – and infectious laugh – made a huge impression. So we were thrilled when she decided to run for the role of Southern Region Representative to National.
DaCosta originally hails from the South – the very far South beyond the US borders. She was born in Jamaica, but moved to Fort Lauderdale, FL in 2006. She has a long education in design in the arts: Associates degree in Graphic Design from Miami Dade, Bachelors in Studio Arts from Florida Atlantic U., and Masters degree in Media Arts from Full Sail. Her design firm, YKMD, focuses on brand development and new media. While her client base is broad, she’s been especially active in the entertainment industry, having worked on projects for HBO, ClearChannel, Atlantic Records, and Circle House Studios.
She has also continued to paint, and will be exhibiting later this year at a Caribbean art and music festival, as well as at Old Dillard High School Museum, a magnet school she first attended when arriving in the USA. In her spare time, she will be teaching a figure drawing at the African American Research Library and Cultural Center in Broward County, FL. The center is located in a predominantly African American and culturally enriched community, and teaching there is her way to give back to her community.
DaCosta became aware of the Guild from the designer Barry Zaid, who she meet in the hallways of Miami International University, and Art Institute. Zaid is an accomplished designer and illustrator, originally employed at Pushpin Studios in New York City. He employed DaCosta in his studio, helping to digitize his vast library of artwork (much of which was created before the advent of publishing software). In hearing DaCosta complain about the low fees – packaged as work for “exposure” – demanded by entertainment companies, Zaid suggested she take a look at the Guild, an organization he had joined years earlier. She did, and became a member in March 2016, wanting to be a part of an advocacy organization for visual artists. As she said, “What’s the point in just sitting around and complaining? Do something!”
DaCosta loves to connect with fellow designers, and continues to paint. (Used with permission)
She’d like to bring that energy and drive to the Guild board, working to raise awareness of the Guild and the initiatives we support. At the outset, she’s working on utilizing social media to get the Southern Region noticed, scheduling Twitter chats and planning meetups. Her background in digital media and marketing is apparent; she’s already drafted a series of talking points based on information from our Handbook, and she’s gotten several design colleagues with big followings to participate. Her goal is to make the organization appear a bit less “starchy” so that our message of self empowerment and knowledge resonates. After all, “people won’t follow you unless they have a personal connection to you.”
You can connect with DaCosta through Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. You can also check out her vlog on YouTube; her irreverent take on working for “exposure” is worth a listen.