2025 Hot New Things: Jade Little, Victoria University of Wellington
Design Assembly profiles a selection of the top graduates from the best Art and Design Schools in Aotearoa New Zealand. We welcome these talented emerging professionals to our industry, learn about their passions, final projects, developing creative confidence and ambitions for the future.
Today we speak with Jade Little who recently graduated with a Bachelor of Design Innovation from Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington. Find out more about undergraduate and postgraduate study options in art and design by visiting our Design Schools page.
Tell us a bit about yourself:
From about 5 years old, I’ve enjoyed creating, all-be-it-smearing paint on a page at this age, but that was just the start of something. My artwork improved drastically when I attended The Learning Connection (TLC) in Taita, Lower Hutt, attending weekly art classes during my primary school years. At TLC I got the chance to experiment with many mediums including sculpture, mixed media, sketching, and my personal favourite, painting. My art journey continued at college. I did well in year 9 and 10 art classes, but Years 11 – 13 (NCEA level 1-3) is when I thrived. I had an amazing art teacher at college, and he helped me push myself and my artistic abilities to the limit. I’ve always been a reserved person, but he taught me to be bold and have the confidence to go that little bit further. So, I did. My final painting artboard in year 13 was the wackiest collection of artwork I’d done, and for that reason, it’s my favourite because I could see my growth. My love of art has only grown and transitioned into a love for design as well.
What was the focus of your graduating project?
I created Krafty Kea, a stationery collection that advocates for endangered animals in Aotearoa New Zealand. To finalise my degree I wanted to design products that showcased my roots in painting, and my passion for using my design practice to help animals.
It was important for me to showcase a variety of Aotearoa New Zealand’s endangered species, so I chose three birds and three animals. The Hura Te Ao Gecko, Kākāriki Karaka, Maui Dolphin, and Bryde’s Whale are critically endangered, and the Kea and Tuke are endangered.
I have painted and scanned images of the wildlife. My stationery collection includes notebooks, greeting cards, bookmarks, a tote bag, and information cards. I’ve kept the designs simple to let the endangered animals shine.
An important aspect of this collection are the information cards. Each of the six has a description of one of the animals. They all include a list of charities and a QR code that takes you to the charity’s websites so you can donate
Why did you choose to study design at Victoria?
Victoria University has a great name and is well respected. I chose to study here because of the ability to tailor my degree to my own goals. I have majored in Communication Design and minored in Design for Social Innovation. The combination of the two programmes allowed me to use graphic design to communicate important messages about climate change and advocating for the most vulnerable. Being able to use my painting abilities within my design work was part of my reasoning for choosing the design innovation degree.
What did you enjoy most about the design programme?
My degree taught me the fundamentals of graphic design but allowed me to integrate my traditional painting skills into my work. I loved being able to do this, particularly in the second-year visual narratives and illustration courses. Combining traditional painting and graphic design is something that I’ll be doing more of in my future work. I enjoyed learning the ins and outs of typography, as it’s such a fine skill to have and one that involves detailed work, which is right up my alley.
An unexpected highlight of my degree was taking two creative coding courses. Never did I think I’d take coding courses during my degree! I had a course spot to fill in first year, so I decided why not try out creative coding. It was one of my favourite courses I took in first year, so much so, that I took the second-year creative coding course as well. It was hard work, and time-consuming, but so rewarding. Now I can add coding to my design toolkit.
What was your biggest challenge while studying?
12 weeks per semester seems like a good chunk of time, but in reality, when you’re balancing 3 or 4 courses with 3 assignments each, time goes quickly, even with great time management. Due to this, you have to think quickly and work smartly. My biggest challenge was creative block because when I create, I like to have the time to conceptualise my idea. Therefore, some projects I did had so much potential but weren’t up to my standards due to the time restrictions and looming deadlines.
What inspired you to pick design as a career path?
Funnily enough, when I was younger, I was set on being a Marine Biologist. I adore animals and I think I had these fantasised expectations of what that job would entail when it is not the reality. I knew in my heart that I’d always wanted to be an artist, but as I’ve heard many creatives say, I wasn’t sure if I’d make a career out of being an artist. At the end of 2020 I decided that I wanted to look into design, it seemed like the way of the future, and I felt I could make a positive change in the world if I were to become a designer. In 2021, I spent a couple of hours with a local graphic designer from Lower Hutt. She showed me what her day-to-day design schedule looked like, and I felt inspired. So, I applied for the Bachelor of Design Innovation program at Victoria University, and I haven’t looked back – I love what I do.
Who is your favourite designer/artist/creative?
My favourite artist is Robert Kushner. My college art teacher introduced me to him, and I love the way Kushner uses mixed media, colour, and intriguing compositions in his artwork. His predominant subject matter is flowers, which I appreciate as I enjoy depicting nature in my paintings, whether that’s flowers, animals, or other aspects of nature.
What piece in your portfolio are you most proud of?
I’m most proud of my Adventures of Stewy picture book and my Krafty Kea stationery collection. I created The Adventures of Stewy in a second-year visual narratives course and showcased my illustration and writing abilities. However, if I had to pick only one favourite, it would be the Krafty Kea stationery collection that I completed most recently for my Communication Design Capstone. This is because of the range of skills I showcased in one project.
What’s next for you?
I’m currently on the lookout for an opportunity in a graphic design or illustration position, that challenges me creatively to think outside the box. I want to start in a full time job to build experience, then I may consider doing freelance work in the future.
You’ll definitely see me including my traditional artwork in my future designs, and continuing to advocate for the issues that matter most. On the side I’ll be working on many painting projects and selling my artwork.
Where can we see more of your work?
My Portfolio, LinkedIn, Facebook, behance, Instagram and felt.
Feel free to contact me via email address for art/design queries: jade23.nz@gmail.com
