Neeraj Kainth
Published 19th July 2021
INTRODUCTION
Neeraj Kainth is a multidisciplinary designer based in Birmingham and a recent Birmingham City University Graphic Communication graduate.
His work spans a range of mediums including brand identity, print, editorial and experimental aspects of design. Neeraj is also the host for Fuse Birmingham which is a platform that elevates the voices and work of People of Colour creatives in the city.
He’s part of the Birmingham Design team, which is responsible for organising creative events such as; Birmingham Design Festival and Glug Birmingham and Gather.
Congrats on your graduation! What are you most excited about now that you’re officially heading into industry?
Thank you! I’m excited and nervous if I’m completely honest. I’m looking forward to meeting new people with different perspectives and outlooks on design. I’m also looking forward to figuring out what I’ll hate and what I’ll love (if that makes sense).
Phorm © Neeraj Kainth
You studied a HND before attending the BCU Graphic Comms course, how did that experience shape your approach to design?
I was fortunate to be on a brilliant Level 3 course and HND course before I went to BCU. The courses were taught away from the college in a studio space called FEED. FEED was set up by one of my tutors – Adam Guy. The aim of FEED was to create an environment that aligned education and industry.
We worked collaboratively and often worked on several live briefs in the studio as well as the briefs set by our tutors. We were taught to think conceptually, create work rooted in narrative and to how to bring experimental elements into more commercial projects. During my time on the course, I worked on several live briefs which exposed me to how the industry works and the importance of soft skills. When I got to BCU I realised how those live briefs though at times were difficult, really set me up with how to deal with clients and being professional.
The highlights for me being part of the course was organising exhibitions and talks. At the end of each year, we’d set up an exhibition in the studio and externally in spaces around Birmingham to showcase our final major project work. It’s worth mentioning that these shows were always funded by the students, the college rarely forked out money for us, so we were really driven to make the work and experience the best we could.
We’d work together on the brand identity and create invites to send out to various design studios and creatives within the region. I have fond memories of our 2018 exhibition titled no-set.format. I helped my mate Tom McElroy with some of his brand executions like foil blocking our invites in house and painting the identity on the side of the venue. No denying we worked really hard to set up those exhibitions – one day we got to the venue at 7am and left at 1am the next day! It always paid off though we’d enjoy the process, the community sense and heading to Snobs after the private view!
Unfortunately, FEED doesn’t exist anymore :( The college it was affiliated with decided that they didn’t want to carry on funding the studio and refused to find an alternative space, so instead the course got moved into a dull classroom at the main campus. However, we still regularly meet up with each other and collaborate on all sorts of projects so the community hasn’t completely disappeared.
East Birmingham Ballet © Neeraj Kainth
What do you love most about the process of working by hand?
For a very long time I really struggled with composition and how to structure my work. I found by collaging, printing out test images and cutting them up really helped me structure my work. I just found it so much easier than staring at my screen for hours moving things slightly and being really indecisive, the process of working by hand is the complete opposite. Now I’m a bit more confident, I often do a lot of collage and Graphic Art in my free time as sort of an exercise that indirectly informs my practice.
“I found by collaging, printing out test images and cutting them up, really helped me structure my work. I just found it so much easier than staring at my screen for hours.”
You’ve landed some exciting opportunities with the likes of Fuse, Birmingham Design and Common Curiosity. How did these come about and what advice would you give to people struggling to get industry experience?
For a long time I thought the industry was this inaccessible place that only the best students and designers could enter but I quickly realised its actually quite small, there’s a decent amount of friendly folk and everyone knows each other. Any students at college or university – if your institution hosts creative initiatives, workshops and talks - get involved, I’ve found that only good can come from them.
For me just casual chats and being nice went a long way. When we were sending out invites for our exhibitions at FEED, I’d walk around Birmingham and hand deliver the invites. By doing this I was able to chat to designers about my work and their own practises. My friends often joke saying “oh Neeraj knows everyone in Brum” because anytime we were in a creative area of the city I’d say hello to like five different people, I think that’s where it started! What might be easier if I list some scenarios and how I think I landed those opportunities.
Common Curiosity was one of the first studios I had reached out to directly for an internship, I was really anxious to send the email, so it sat in my drafts for days. When I gathered the courage to press send, I mentioned in my email how my practice was moving towards brand identity and print, so Common Curiosity felt like a great match.
“My friends often joke saying “oh Neeraj knows everyone in Brum” because anytime we were in a creative area of the city I’d say hello to like five different people, I think that’s where it started!”
At the time I didn’t end up getting the internship because they didn’t have many projects on that would benefit me. But a few months later Paul Felton, one of the Creative Directors contacted me saying that they’ve had some work come in and they were in the areas I wanted to work in, so I was offered an internship opportunity for a few weeks. The worst thing that can happen is you’re met with a no, but you’ve still managed to get your foot in the door and you’ve established a new relationship. It’s important to remember that designers are just people too, so don’t be afraid to reach out!
I currently work part time with a local artist called Imbue, helping him pack his artwork and sorting out logistics. I was introduced to him by my tutor Kristian Jones when I tagged along with him to view his work at an exhibition back in 2017. Over the next few years, I invited him to exhibitions and events that I was involved in, chatted over Instagram and occasionally helped him set up his exhibitions. In 2019 I got a message from him asking me to help him around the studio a few days a week. Which felt totally unexpected because I wasn’t actively seeking out a job with him but great to know all those small acts of kindness and interactions led to that moment.
Royal Birmingham Conservatoire © Neeraj Kainth
What value do you get personally from being part of different teams and creative communities like Fuse and Birmingham Design?
I’ve probably mentioned community so many times now, but it is the community. With Fuse I’ve met and spoken to so many creatives of colour in my city who I’ve never heard of. As a person of colour I understand how we can often feel like imposters in this industry, so it’s been incredibly enriching to celebrate the amazing talent of underrepresented groups in the city.
I’ve known the Birmingham Design team for a few years now and Luke Tonge was one of my lecturers at BCU. What I love about the team is that we all share the passion about living in the West Midlands and celebrating it. People take the piss out of the region on social media, but I’m proud to be living here. There’s so much talent here and it’s often overlooked. I get so infuriated when people say that you have to move to London to make it in the creative industry but it’s far from the truth. Being part of a team that champions the creative talent in our region is perfect for me.
“As a person of colour I understand how we can often feel like imposters in this industry, so it’s been incredibly enriching to celebrate the amazing talent of underrepresented groups in the city.”
Many people (ourselves included) start out in the creative world feeling extremely anxious. Where do you think young creatives can find confidence and how have you overcome any anxiety in the past?
I used to suffer with anxiety for a long time and still creeps back in at times. I can’t pretend to say “oh you’ll be fine don’t worry” when in reality I know it’s not that simple. Everybody is different and deals with it in different ways, for me I dealt with it by inhabiting myself in a community that was supportive.
There’s no denying that this year has been incredibly difficult for everyone, but one thing that has been ignited is the sense of community amongst young creatives. I’ve made friends and spoken to so many people over the year from loads of different Universities and countries. I don’t think I ever would’ve don’t that before, and I find comfort in knowing that they might be going through similar problems too, so they are empathetic.
Consumerism © Neeraj Kainth
What’s been one of your favourite collaborations to date and why?
Tough question! Over the last year or so I’ve really been enjoying working on projects with my mate Oliver Wells. We’ve worked on a few brand identity projects and editorial briefs but I think my favourite one so far is the identity for the East Birmingham Ballet company. At the time we were a bit frustrated with how some tutors really pushed competition briefs onto students and we wanted to prove you can still do commercial work that isn’t soul destroying. So when we spotted this brief set by a local designer Ian Jones we really wanted to work on it.
Where do you see yourself in three years’ time?
Speeding down the M6 in a Nissan Skyline after getting filthy rich from a fast food rebrand…Nah only joking. Honestly, I have no idea. I’ve just given myself loose goals and timeframes for when I want to achieve. I want to try and figure out what sort of designer I want to be, whether that’s freelancing, working in an agency or starting my own studio I don’t know. I haven’t decided what it is yet but I know I want to include the awesome people I’ve met over the last few years.
Follow Neeraj
Instagram / Twitter / LinkedIn / Website
If you’d like to reach out to Neeraj, drop him an email to: neerajkainthdesign@gmail.com
Recent interviews
