My Story

What I really love to do

Nice to meet you

Freelancer. Entrepreneur. Pop Culture Aficionado

Hi, I’m Jalen.

I am a freelance multidisciplinary designer, focusing on illustrations, graphic design, and design strategy. I have a great passion for pop culture, especially for comic books, film, and science-fiction, all of which strongly influence my work.

I view every project given to me as a learning experience and a way to grow as an artist and designer.

Feel free to download a copy of my resume HERE.

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The Original Melting Pot – New York City

Born in the greatest, most diverse city in the world, to a Filipino-Indonesian mother and a Spanish-Italian Father.

#Diversity #All-American #Queens

New Life, New Start – Cyprus

At 12, I moved with my parent to Cyprus, where I graduated Valedictorian from the American International School of Cyprus.

I took higher level IB art, working around themes and subject from modern pop culture, and developed my love of art and design.

Partying with Highland Coos – Edinburgh

I traded the hot for the cold and studied at the University of Edinburgh, receiving a BA in Architecture. By the end of my degree, I realized architecture was not my industry. In my spare time at university, I was the Head of Illustration of the The Student, the UK’s oldest student newspaper.

After a gap year, I switched my career path and gained experience in illustration and graphic design through freelance work.

Just Hold On We’re Going Home –
New York City

I moved back to New York City to attend Parsons, The New School of Design, where I received a Graduate Certificate in Strategic Design and Management (Design Business). I wanted more insight into the business of design based industries, but I received much more.

Being one of the youngest in my program, my classmates provided as much invaluable perspective and motivation as my professors. That’s why my classmate and I took one our final project and used the business proposal to launch Freelance St.

There Are Toys For All Ages –
New York City

With Freelance St. being put on the back burner, I’ve started to explore with sculpting and custom toy design.

It started from a simple contest through Blick for custom Munny Dolls.  My first custom toy was a Munny Doll in the style of Ralphie from A Christmas Story.  From that figure, I received other commissions for other figures and started to experiment with materials.  Since then, I branched out making other toys from Funko Pops, Kidrobot figures and PlasticCell figures.

Some figures are one off and others are made in limited runs and mass produced by me and only me.

SKILLS

Creative

Design
Photoshop
Illustrator
InDesign
Drawing
Sculpting
Painting
AutoCad
SketchUp
Color Theory

Professional

Leadership
Strategy & Design Thinking
Marketing
Research
Word
Excel
Powerpoint

Personal

Communication
Punctuality
Organization
Team Work
Public Speaking
Time Management
Problem Solving
Inquisitive

Let`s work together