PROJECT INFO: JICC Mascot Characters | Merchandise & Giveaway Swag
PROJECT SCOPE: Co-creator and co-illustrator
PROJECT DURATION: Various timelines across 2023-2024
DESCRIPTION:The Embassy of Japan has had an unofficial shiba inu mascot since roughly 2017 fondly named "Kana" (oftentimes called "Kana-chan"). Kana-chan was originally created by Tiffany Chen, another illustrator on the team prior to her departure. She was designed as a character meant to represent the friendly, education-oriented side of the Embassy of Japan in Washington, D.C. Her counterpart is a lucky cat or "maneki neko" named "Nene" (or "Nene-chan") who was created to represent the Japan Information & Culture Center—an events space and art gallery that operates on behalf of the Embassy. Nene-chan was originally mocked up in 2019 by Luciana Mujica-Martorell but the two mascot characters were eventually re-designed in 2022 by yours truly. Their official "launch" and introduction on the Embassy's social media accounts is scheduled for early 2024 as part of the JICC, Embassy of Japan's ongoing rebranding efforts.
I referenced both of these artists' line art, brush strokes, color palettes, etc. to merge their general styles in order to have consistency between the two characters. Since their re-design, they continue to appear on the Embassy of Japan's social media accounts, pop-up events, flyers, and promotional goods such as badges or pins, postcards, signage, and stickers. The items on this page are some of the limited edition swag pieces that I both illustrated and designed for several projects with the JICC, Embassy of Japan. For more details on my illustration work, you can head over to
THIS PAGE.
ADDITIONAL TASKS: Item invoicing/financials, mockups, digital illustration, art direction, concept
ASSETS MADE: Button pins, vinyl stickers
TOOLKIT: Clip Studio Paint, Illustrator, Photoshop
