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Barkneh AK

@barknehak

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Brand designer and art director at Gezat Communications, building identities and campaigns for 60+ organizations.

Ethiopia

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At Gezat Communications, I founded and lead a creative studio delivering brand identities, campaigns, and websites for 60+ organizations. I created Art of the Past for Dalga Leather, generating 200,000+ views and about three times the brand’s usual monthly sales in two weeks.

I’ve art directed launch campaigns for Safaricom Ethiopia and led creative teams for Awaqi and Carry1st. At Awaqi, I helped grow the social following to 500,000 and drove 15,000 course registrations against a 5,000 target.

Experience

Work history, roles, and key accomplishments

Current

Founder & Creative Director

Current

Gezat Communications

Dec 2023 - Present (2 years 11 months)

Founded and lead a creative studio delivering brand identity, campaigns and websites for 60+ organizations, with work reaching markets including the US, Canada and Turkey. Led full brand identities from naming to launch for multiple clients and created campaigns that significantly boosted sales.

Art Director

Zeleman Communications, Advertising and Production

May 2023 - Nov 2023 (6 months)

Art directed launch and brand campaigns for Safaricom Ethiopia during its first year as the country's first private telecom operator. Owned art direction and graphic design across campaign deliverables, from concept to final assets.

Art Direction Graphic Design Campaign Design Brand Campaigns Adobe Creative Suite

Freelance Storyboard Artist / Creative Director

Last Mile Health

Feb 2023 - Nov 2023 (9 months)

Created storyboards and visual concepts for Last Mile Health, an international health NGO, working fully remotely.

Storyboarding Visual Concepts Creative Direction Remote Collaboration

Creative Director & Marketing Strategist

Awaqi (First Consult / Mastercard Foundation)

Aug 2022 - Sep 2023 (1 year 1 month)

Led a 5-person creative team and set marketing strategy for Awaqi, a youth skills platform funded by the Mastercard Foundation's BRIDGES programme. Grew social following about 2x to 500,000 and drove 15,000 course registrations against a 5,000 target.

Creative Direction Marketing Strategy Social Media Marketing Team Leadership Brand Strategy

Designer

Luna Slaughterhouse & Fresh Corner

Jun 2022 - Apr 2023 (10 months)

Provided design services for Luna Slaughterhouse & Fresh Corner.

Design

Brand Designer (Freelance)

Unbox Marketing Consultancy

Oct 2020 - Mar 2023 (2 years 5 months)

Designed the logo and full visual identity system for Mesirat, a $48M, five-year Gebeya Inc. and Mastercard Foundation program launched in March 2023.

Brand Identity Logo Design Visual identity systems Brand Guidelines

Creative Director (Part-time)

Big Dream Ethiopia

Apr 2019 - Jan 2023 (3 years 9 months)

Served as part-time Creative Director, contributing creative direction and design expertise.

Creative Direction Design

Creative Director / Lead Brand Designer

Gmedia (Gebeya Media)

Oct 2021 - Jul 2022 (9 months)

Led a 12-person creative and production team producing 50–60 ad creatives per month for Carry1st, Africa's leading mobile games publisher. Worked remotely across time zones with stakeholders in Egypt, the US and Europe during a period of rapid growth.

Creative Direction Brand Design Ad Creative Motion Graphics Team Leadership Remote Collaboration Illustration