Portfolio of Aliyah Marr

Selected Client List, Aliyah Marr
Select Client List, Aliyah Mar

Branding | Communication | Content Management

My first experience with branding was with a startup company, which is still a successful company today. From there, I naturally gravitated into the role for my clients as I advise them on how to brand themselves or their companies. Branding is not marketing. It comes before marketing; it is in the branding process that you discover “who” you are and who your customer base is. It is then a matter of authentically communicating your service, brand, and mission to the world at large. The language you use is that of your (potential) clients, so the first step is to create a profile of that demographic. This is exactly what a good designer does, and it is integral to UI/UX design, and design thinking.
VISUAL DESIGNER | MULTIMEDIA
My career as a visual designer has had a lot of variety, to say the least: I have created/programmed websites and interactive games, edited/created videos, created opening title sequences and motion graphics, edited sound, created props for feature films, designed Print-on-Demand books/products, and designed for print. I love all types of design, and I believe that a good designer is constantly updating her skills and educating herself while broadening her view. I am constantly learning. I got a chance to teach design at top schools in NYC: this was an amazing opportunity to share my love of design and learning with others.
A design is transparent when it is so well-executed that its structure seems to disappear—I use this same communication style in other fields, such as instructional design, education, visual design, UI design, and graphic design. ~ Aliyah Marr
FREELANCE CREATIVE DIRECTOR | BRAND DEVELOPER
As a freelance art director/creative director, I have helped brand several successful startup companies, aided entrepreneurs, and over the years, have collected a client list that includes Fortune 500 clients, such as Morgan Stanley, IBM, American Express, and Chivas, but I’ve also enjoyed the dynamic of working with smaller businesses.
As a Creative Director, I use images and words in order to create a brand. You really have to love words and be a stickler for precise communication in order to do this job! ~ Aliyah Marr

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Book Designer

I love designing books that are not just pretty faces, but beautiful inside and out. I have designed, edited my clients’ books, and helped many of them through the publishing process.
Hidden GrandMa

Hidden Grandma

A children’s book that “hides” Grandma in ever-more ridiculous places. Design and branding: part of the “I Love my Grands” series.

No Time Like the Present

Stark, bright posterized illustrative style underlines the title in the artwork with the shadow of the runner that points to her future romantic interest in the distance.

The Creative Life in 365 Degrees

The cover uses very simple graphics; a circle in an elliptical orbit around the title. The image offers a visual pun that contrasts the idea of 365 days vs. 360

The Myth of Race

The image is of a push-up toy that I bought in Chelsea a few years ago. Tension is conveyed by the jarring offset of the foreground and background colors.

—> More Book Design

Graphic Designer

I started out as a fine artist, went into illustration, then into interactive design, and finally returned full circle into print design when I started designing books. There is something very satisfying about practicing “pure” graphic design again. There is no need to consider how the page will look on different screens and devices (“responsive” user interface design), and no concern about the typefaces or changing layouts. And while what-you-see-is-NOT-what-you-get, the freedom to practice pure design again is quite heady: the images against the white paper, the color of the body copy, using negative empty space in the design. Ahh. So satisfying. Fun, beautiful. Like Happy Cat Sushi. Below are some examples of graphic design layouts. —> More Graphic Design Projects

Design Teacher | Corporate Trainer

As a design teacher for Pratt Institute, The School of Visual Arts, and Parsons School of Design, I taught courses in graphic design, UI design, interactive game design, motion graphics, WordPress CMS, and video editing using the following software: Director, Dreamweaver, Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator, Premiere, Flash, and After Effects. HTML, Javascript, Actionscript. PHP. I am also a corporate trainer/workshop leader and public speaker with over 20 years of experience. My clients have included the Department of Defense, the IRS, The NYC Economic Development Corporation, and trade shows. I specialize in Adobe programs and WordPress.

Instructional Designer | Adobe Instructor

In 2020 I completed a total of 294 video tutorials on Illustrator and Photoshop. I converted my in-depth knowledge into full three-level courses for each program. I wrote the scripts, did the screen capture, recorded the voice-over, and edited the video. In addition, I created quizzes for each level.

UI Designer

Over the course of my career, I have designed and developed thousands of web pages and other online media. When I worked for Digitas one of my accounts was American Express—the site at the time was over 50,000 pages—all managed through a proprietary Content Management System. These days I focus primarily on visual design and content management within the WordPress CMS: I function as a creative director/brand designer involved with communication and developing or managing brands.

Vitality Wellness

UI Design | Content Management

The Tarot Cafe

UI Design | Content Management

Barbara Lamb

UI Design | Content Management

Mexico Real Estate

UI Design | Content Management

Video Creation and Editing | Voice-over Talent

I have created online videos for most of my career as a designer. My client list includes Graphics/Create Magazine, Media Bistro, NYC Economic Development Corporation, and the U.S. Army. One of the biggest e-learning projects I worked on was the Hummer multimedia repair manual for the Army. I designed and programmed the user interface, and then headed up a team of designers to create the interactive movies. The manual included text, video, voice-overs, graphics, and sound in two languages inside an interactive interface. The final project included hundreds of files and movies. We achieved this herculean feat in less than 6 months. Below are some examples of the work I did for MediaBistro: my job was to create instructional videos to teach web design to subscribers of their e-Learning division. The managing editor, Ben Kessler, told me that I was one of the subscribers’ favorite instructors, probably because I liked to bring an element of humor into my work.
Aliyah Marr is wonderful to work with. Her original, idiosyncratic work consistently gets a positive response from our users. She has become a favorite of our subscribers! Aliyah’s enthusiasm and cooperative nature make her a joy to work with.* ~ Benjamin Kessler,Managing Editor, MediaBistro
SKILLS: Adobe trainer, instructional design, curriculum development, scriptwriting, video content creation (screencasting), video editing, voice-over talent, quiz creation.

The Gummy Bear Awards for Sticky Websites

I coined the phrase, “Gummy Bear Awards” for this tutorial on how to make websites “stickier” with good UI design.

Design Police Report 5 Web Design Crimes

In this tutorial series, I get to be a police officer and report on crimes in user interface design.

Lessons From the Bauhaus for UI Designers

How to apply basic design principles from the Bauhaus movement to contemporary UI design.

Gestalt Psychology in UI Design

Gestalt is a term which means “unified whole.” It refers to theories of visual perception developed by German psychologists in the 1920s.

—> More E-Learning Videos

Writing | Copywriting | Content Creation

Following are some samples of some of my work. In the course of my professional career as a freelance art director/creative director, I have created content for my clients for websites, brochures, e-learning courses, email, Amazon listings, branding, communication, etc. I have worked as a copywriter, content creator, scriptwriter for tutorial movies, and author of articles for various magazines. I am the author of 15 books on creativity, self-development, and social change.
I love to write, especially when I use it to teach. If I can throw a little humor into the mix, all the better. ~ Aliyah Marr
apple logo

How do You Like Them Upside-Down Apples?

How do You Like Them Upside-Down Apples? Article about the marketing genius of Apple.

baldness-as-a-brand-aliyah-marr

Baldness as a Brand

As a designer, marketer and all-around cultural observer, I must say that I love Seth Godin. But it is not his trim physique that attracts my attention, it is his head.

What Do Women Really Want?

What do women want and how do you write advertising copy for them.

What is WRITE for Robots isn’t always RIGHT for People

Good copy depends on savvy and honest marketing skills and should be written for the target audience.

—> More Writing / Copywriting Projects

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Additional Accomplishments / Skills

Author

I am the author of over 15 books in print, all of which may be found on major distributors. Topics include self-help, DIY, creativity, and tarot. One of the joys of being a designer as well as the author was getting to design my own books. Frankly, designing my books was almost more fun than writing them!

The Creative Life in 365 Degrees

The cover uses very simple graphics; a circle in an elliptical orbit around the title. The image offers a visual pun that contrasts the idea of 365 days vs. 360

The Visionary

Another of my 3D illustrations, in this case, I place a cube of a face on top of the right eye of another face and shot it at an angle.

Typography
Futura Light and Light Condensed

3D art and book design Aliyah Marr

The Tarot Key

The book’s interior uses a large, screened-back (grayed) image on the left page of each entry, balanced by the smaller image on the right in black. A special technique

Do it Yourself Tarot

The target market inspired the cover; commercial images of tools form the letters “DIY”; the title is a metallic-looking embossed

—> More Book Designs  |  —> My Books on Amazon

Film Designer

I worked as a graphic designer for two feature films, Little Man Tate, and The Public Eye. This was an exhilarating and exhausting job. As a designer, I was responsible for designing many of the props: I designed signage, logos, various printed props/materials, and book covers. Because I was hired as a non-union freelancer, I did not receive credit for either film. However, working on the set for two major films was definitely one of the most interesting jobs I have ever had. I would do it again in a heartbeat. Little Man TateThe Public Eye

Game Designer | Print-on-Demand Product Creation

I have created many online games, using the Flash interface and Director. Most of these were educational/intellectual games. I designed the interface and programmed the interactive elements. More recently, I launched a couple of Kickstarter campaigns for a Tarot game, which was designed for POD production. I find the Print-On-Demand process very enjoyable because one can produce a mockup of a product such as a game very quickly. Having published many books using this process, I am also well acquainted with how quickly changes can be made. On Amazon, a book can literally be published or updated overnight.

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Quick Bio

I studied fine art at École nationale supérieure des beaux-arts in Paris, France. When I returned to the USA, I put in a few years as an illustrator before I gravitated to visual design. Then I was asked to teach illustration at a local college, and I started creating online courses (eLearning) while I designed for local clients.

A move to NYC put me in a bigger pond, and I found myself working at Digitas as Senior Art Director while I freelanced at other design firms/ad agencies. I landed plum jobs at the top design schools in New York City, teaching interactive media, design, video editing, motion graphics, and interactive programming at Parsons School of Design, Pratt Institute, and The School of Visual Arts. In addition, I have given seminars and workshops on multimedia and created many online instructional movies for designers through MediaBistro and Knowledge City. As a teacher, I love to inspire my students to achieve their best. I carry this forward in my work as a corporate trainer and creative coach. As an interactive / digital / UI designer and artist, my artwork has been featured in the Siggraph conference and national shows, such as Digital Concentrate.

Aliyah Marr Bullet point CV

  • Freelance Creative Director
  • Creative Projects Advisor
  • Creative Coach
  • Senior Art Director for Digitas
  • Senior Designer/Analyst for Aaron Marcus Associates
  • Art Director for the Hummer eLearning project for the US Army
  • Content Creator
  • Instructional Designer
  • Course author (Photoshop, Illustrator, how to design for the web) for Knowledge City, MediaBistro
  • Visual Designer
  • UI Designer
  • Game Designer Programming / Design
  • Design Teacher (School of Visual Arts, Pratt Institute, Parsons School of Design)
  • Corporate Trainer (Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, PremierePro, AfterEffects, WordPress)
  • Published Author—15 books on creativity, personal development: self-help, how-to genres
  • Creative content writer/editor
  • Graduate École nationale supérieure des beaux-arts in Paris, France

A Very Original Mind

I find Aliyah to have a very original mind. She thinks outside of the box. She is particularly great at concept, but also very proficient and efficient in her technical executions. I found [her web design] particularly cutting edge and engaging. Was very wowed by her website. Highly recommended.

Be Empowered

Aliyah has a special gift in that she can get to the root of your personal and professional issues very quickly. She is able to open your eyes so that you see aspects of yourself which you have never before knew existed. By doing this, she then is able to… Read more “Be Empowered”

I Can’t Say Enough Good Things About Aliyah

I can’t say enough good things about working with Aliyah Marr, she is inspirational, keeps me on track, has sound advice and is very knowledgeable in many aspects of the creative fields. We work as a team and she gets to know your goals and stumbling blocks and works around… Read more “I Can’t Say Enough Good Things About Aliyah”

Creative and Results Oriented

Aliyah is a very creative and talented professional that is a joy to work with. During the time that I worked with her she was ready to take on responsibility and she delivered results with excellence under last minute pressure. I was impressed with her ability to quickly learn a… Read more “Creative and Results Oriented”

I strongly recommend Aliyah Marr

Working with Aliyah was a blessing. She listened to my higher vision and guided my rewriting with precise suggestions. She truly has the ability to unlock a writer’s potential. Aliyah’s style is sweet and sincere. She cares about the power of words. She has excellent ideas and exchanged ideas with… Read more “I strongly recommend Aliyah Marr”

Aliyah helped a dream come true for me…

Aliyah helped a dream come true for me—we worked together to launch my first book! I am so grateful for her expertise and commitment to her work. She listens carefully while advising to ensure the best outcome and she stays focused to help reach deadlines. Thank you, Aliyah. January 23,… Read more “Aliyah helped a dream come true for me…”

Fresh, Bold Ideas

Aliyah is a driven, talented, brilliant designer who will not rest until she can fulfill her vision. Her work ethic goes above and beyond the call of duty, and she is single minded in her pursuit of perfectionism in her own work. Aliyah is committed to challenging herself on a… Read more “Fresh, Bold Ideas”

Harness your Potential

I worked with Aliyah recently on career development. She’s a very collaborative, spontaneous, and thoughtful coach. She lets me see aspects of myself I wasn’t paying attention to and helps me develop tools to point me in the right direction. I highly recommend working with her if you’re a creative… Read more “Harness your Potential”

After One Session With Aliyah…

After one session with Aliyah, a 50-year old deep emotional trauma was dissolved and in its place is pure love. The process seemed effortless and the sorrow is gone.

A Great Mentor

Aliyah is a great teacher who has awakened strengths that have been dormant in me. My views on life have changed since working with her. Honestly, I was unsure what to do with my life or what direction to go. I felt lost and was looking for understanding and my… Read more “A Great Mentor”

Amazing Talent

Amazing talent and super easy to work with.

Solution-Oriented Life Coaching

Aliyah has extra-ordinary intuitive insight and years of hands-on experience in the field of solution-oriented life-coaching and brings her entire background of sophistication and knowledge from a-z high tech per the inter-marketing a-z to her profound research in the magic of getting what you want and from here to there.… Read more “Solution-Oriented Life Coaching”

She Never Gives Up

The very first time I met Aliyah was at the ASR show in San Diego when she visited our booth. She was very passionate and had some great ideas to help us promote our fledgling company, 9:Fish Surfboards. Within a month or so, she had negotiated a TV advertising deal… Read more “She Never Gives Up”

Extraordinary—Out of the Box Thinking

Since working with Aliyah, I have been hugely impressed with her extraordinary ability to create new channels of business thinking and [create] out-of-the-box approaches to radical and challenging ideas for enterprise. She has a warm and engaging temperament and persistence to meet the orthodox head-on and root out those conscious… Read more “Extraordinary—Out of the Box Thinking”

‘Likely to Recommend’ Score of 10

I was able to get my answers to my questions and fully understand the steps in learning the product. I was able to stop and ask questions [during the corporate training session], and then repeat when necessary. ~ anonymous student review of Adobe After Effects corporate training class, April 2018

An ever-evolving playful and productive journey…

Working with Aliyah is an ever-evolving playful and productive journey. She has helped me recognize my creativity and my life and business have soared. Thank you!

A Favorite of our Subscribers

Aliyah Marr is wonderful to work with. Her original, idiosyncratic work consistently gets a positive response from our users. She has become a favorite of our subscribers! Aliyah’s enthusiasm and cooperative nature make her a joy to work with. ~ Aliyah created over 100 video tutorials on web design for Media… Read more “A Favorite of our Subscribers”

Knowledgeable

I worked with Aliyah on editing and publishing a medical poster and she was great! Knowledgeable with professional publishing techniques and terminology. We worked with Adobe publishing products and she not only knows her way around these complex systems but taught me a lot along the way. I recommend her!

A Transformational Coach

Aliyah is highly creative, imaginative and artistically gifted. I have had the good fortune to have known her on her spiritual and life journey of transformation for many years now as well as recently contracting her to build my website for Lotus Light Healing. Aliyah is a powerful example of… Read more “A Transformational Coach”

Skills

Here is a list of my skills. While no one can actually claim guru-level expertise on so many things, I taught motion graphics, video editing, user interface design, and user experience design at Parsons School of Design, Pratt Institute, and The School of Visual Arts in NYC. If something isn't listed here, just ask, chances are I know something about it. Adobe Creative Cloud, Adobe Creative Suite, advertising, After Effects, art direction, book design, Adobe Captivate, brand development, brand management, branding, business creation, business development, business strategy, client management, CMS, communications, concept development, content creation, Creative Director, content management, content strategy, copywriting, corporate branding, corporate identity, corporate training, creative direction, creative strategy, creative writing, customer service, digital media, e-learning publishing, editing, Flash, graphic design, Google Analytics, illustration, Illustrator, logo design, packaging, personal branding, photography, Photoshop, Premiere, print design, product design, product development, product ideation, public speaking, publishing, seminars, social media manager, software training, technical trainer, typography, user experience design, user interface design, video editing, video production, visual design, voice-over, website analysis, WordPress, workshop leader.
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LinkedIn Profile

Creative Director | Content Creator | Visual Designer | Corporate Trainer | Instructional Designer | Design Teacher