Keira Dooley is a designer with more than 11 years of experience in web site and print design. When designing a site, she has the eye of a fine artist while keeping in mind the technical implications of each pixel. She listens and gets to know to each customer. By honing in on his/her personality, she creates a design that is customized for that individual.
“People ask me, “How did you become a web designer?”
I began designing web sites in 1997 while attending undergraduate school at the University of Florida. Employed as a lab assistant at a USDA mosquito lab, I began freelancing doing some animated web graphics. Interested in learning more about the web, I asked a friend to show me the ropes of web design in exchange for a homecooked meal of enchiladas. That was the beginning.
I proceeded to receive a master’s degree in fine art at California State University, Long Beach. While a fine art degree may not sound like it the typical path for a web designer, you’d be surprised. In my opinion, an art degree uniquely prepares an individual for the any workplace, as it teaches “creative problem-solving.”
Throughout art school, I continued learning more and more about the web as it grew into what it is today. I took freelance jobs to keep my skills sharp and later worked as a professional web designer at institutions, such as the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising; California State University, Long Beach; and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (yes, I got promoted from mosquito girl to web designer!).