Alumni Success Stories

Claire Madill ('07) recently returned from Toronto where she successfully participated in the Spring One of a Kind Show and Sale after being nominated by Emily Carr to be placed in the Craft Community of Canada Section. Her booth was one of 10 booths in the section and showcased her works, including the "Vintage Jar Series" which was photographed for the show’s marketing campaign and flyer.

New Westminster-born artist Joseph Plaskett, established the Joseph Plaskett Foundation in 2004 to support a mature Canadian student to travel and/or study art in Europe for one year.  We are pleased to announce that the 2011 winner of the Joseph Plaskett Award was Emily Carr alum, Jessica Groome ('02).  The $25,000 award is selected by a jury of artists, who are all respected painters and educators.  Jessica received her BFA from Emily Carr University of Art + Design in 2007 and has since gone on to various group exhibitions and her own solo show.  Her destination of choice from the generosity of the Plaske

Farhez Rayani has been achieving his goals ever since leaving Emily Carr University of Art + Design with his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree.

While studying Computer Graphics at SFU, Farhez’s interest and passion for art and design started to win over the technical side of his studies.  He decided to apply to Emily Carr and focus on developing his artistic skills.  The Intergrated Media program (formerly Intermedia) at Emily Carr gave him and the other students in the program the opportunity to explore all aspects of art and media.  The multi-disciplinary approach became an advantage for Farhez, leading him down a path towards a now fulfilling and extremely rewarding career.

Vancouver-based Storypanda and Jostle have recently been chosen as two of the top 15 technology startups in Canada by a distinguished panel of Silicon Valley investors and influencers. The companies were selected to present at this year’s GROW Conference.

Although the two companies develop wildly different products – one sells enterprise collaboration software, the other is targeted at kids and their parents – they do have an interesting commonality: both product design teams are spearheaded by grads of Emily Carr's inaugural year (2008) of the Masters of Applied Arts program!

On August 1, former Emily Carr student Molly Templeton was named Director of Talent & Audience Development for My Damn Channel (MDC).  In this newly-created position, Molly will sign, develop and produce new video creators for mydamnchannel.com and its distribution network of partner sites and further develop its audience through social media, YouTube and the MDC community.   MDC is the leading entertainment studio and distributor of original videos including original comedy series and branded entertainment, with over 50 million unique monthly visitors.

'02 alum Sonny Assu is our Featured Alumni. Find out what he's been up to since graduation. And, plan to see one of his eight (!) upcoming exhibitions.

If you'd like to be considered for an Featured Alumni profile, please contact Ehren Seeland.

Judson Beaumont, born in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan in 1960, came to Vancouver, BC to study art at Capilano College, completing his studies at the Emily Carr Institute of Art and Design.  He graduated from their 3-D department in 1985 and that same year founded Straight Line Designs Inc., creating one-of-a-kind furniture pieces and commissions. Judson has always striven to push the limits and to try different things. He questions everything and takes it to the next level through functionality or by bending the rules.

Born in Hendon North London, Nick immigrated to Canada at the age of eight and studied fine art and film production at the Emily Carr College of Art and Design. Graduating with honours in 1994, he began his career directing music videos for PolyGram in Hong Kong.

Of Chinese descent, Simon Chang was raised in Vancouver before moving to Montreal.  He attended the prestigious Emily Carr Institute of Art + Design on a full scholarship awarded by The Hudson’s Bay Company. Renowned as one of Canada’s most commercially successful designers, Simon continues to explore new creative horizons. An early career in graphic arts and photography is reflected in his eternal love of details, use of colour and striking graphics. His imagination is also sparked by Broadway musicals, art exhibits and street fashion, then re-interpreted through his work.  Simon Chang is a man on the move, as he oversees his Canadian fashion empire from the heart of Montreal’s historic garment district.