ULHAS MOSES
Ulhas Moses is the founder of UMS Design Studio and an internationally acclaimed contemporary Visual Artist, Creative Director, Children’s Book Illustrator, Sculptor, Graphic Designer. He holds a (BFA) from J J School of Art and a masters degree (M.Des) in design from the prestigious Industrial Design Center, IIT Bombay. He is widely travelled researching art in the world’s museums all across Europe and Asia and widely read with a solid understanding of both eastern and western, traditional and contemporary art from different eras and cultures. His deep understanding of art and design theory at an intellectual level have given him the unique ability to handle a wide range of media like: Corporate Branding, UI-UX design, Illustration, Print media, Publishing, Digital media, Animation, Industrial Design and 3D Sculpture. His work is noted for its vivid and lush imagery, painterly and expressive qualities, strong social messages, intellectual rigor, storytelling, symbolism, vibrancy of color and eastern mysticism that has been refined through his own vision to create a unique visual grammar.
His work has been published in defining international design books like “Good Design by Rockport USA ”, “ Young Asian Graphic Designers” and “Graphic Design Inspirations” by Daab Germany, “ For a Good Cause” by Index books, Spain, “Design No Hikidashi” by Graphic-sha, Japan, Etapes Magazine, France, “Instant Graphics “ by Rotovision UK, Asia Pacific Design by Sandu China, Typography 29 by Harper Collins, USA , “BBC Topgear” and the “Rolling Stone” magazine. He serves as a design judge and curator on Asia Pacific Design Annual China and has won the prestigious Shankar’s President of India Award for Art and the New York Type Directors Club Award.
His work has been exhibited in at the worlds largest book fair the Frankfurt Book Fair, Germany, ATYPI, Russia, Argentina, Spain, New Zeland, Cooper Union Gallery NYC, Typographic Circle London, UK and Nagoya Designer Academy, Japan
He also founded RAD (Radical Auto Design) which is a custom automobile design company that designs custom vehicles like vintage motorcycles, buses and corporate theme vehicles. RAD has designed and built the popular Red Bull Music Tour Bus which is India’s first travelling performance venue, a tour bus with stage on wheels and also designed the AUDI mobile trailer, a state of the art showroom and lounge on wheels. He currently lives and works in Los Angeles, California.
DESIGN PHILOSOPHY
ART + CRAFT + DESIGN
UMS work is enormously inspired by the multi-cultural diversity of the Asian and more specifically Indian culture, forms, rituals and languages that give form to the formless and explains the most complex metaphysical ideas. The eternal concepts such as Order-Chaos, Continuity, Grace, Beauty, Grace, Wealth, Knowledge, Enlightenment are the subject matter and recurring themes in Indian and Asian design traditions. He draws from this rich symbolism and interprets it in a contemporary context in his work, thereby fusing both modern design ideas with traditional concepts, the new and the old, forms rooted in the past yet forward looking.
Informed by diverse disciplines such as the traditional arts and crafts, cultures, mythology, jazz, fusion world music, the renaissance, contemporary art movements, sculpture, surrealism, kinetic art, typography, concrete poetry, magic, illusion and fantasy.
Colors are used symbolically to create bright and dynamic passages, chromatically articulating form and content, providing a highly expressive vibration imparting great energy to his work. Visual storytelling is central to the work engaging the different senses, helps to lead his audiences on a journey of self-exploration.
Over the past decade he has created his personal design philosophy, an amalgamation of Art+Craft+Design. His work showcases this delicate balance. Art deals with heightened emotional responses, aesthetic beauty and sophistication into his work. Craft deals with skill and techniques and the ability to work with one’s hand to lend the human touch or soul to his work. Design is about creating order, the encoding of signs, typography. Here he employs structured thinking and programmatic problem solving for clear communication and information design.
EXHIBITIONS
- Drupa Dusseldorf, Germany
- Frankfurt Book Fair Frankfurt, Germany
- Sandu Cultural Media China
- Japan Typography Association Osaka, Japan
- Heiwa-Shigyo Paper Voice Osaka,Japan
- Ito-Ya Gallery Tokyo, Ginza, Japan
- Nagoya Designer Academy Nagoya, Japan
- Kyoto Seika University Kyoto, Japan
- Ecole Visuelle Communication Paris, France
- Typographic Circle London, UK
- Humber College Toronto, Canada
- ATYPI St.Petersburg Russia
- ATYPI Barcelona, Spain
- ATYPI Matadero Argentina
- ATYPI Wellington New Zealand
- Cooper Union Gallery New York , USA
- TypeCon, Buffalo New York, USA
- Art Institute of Atlanta Atlanta, USA
- Savannah College of Art and Design Savannah, Georgia, USA
- University of Bridgeport Bridgeport, Connecticut USA
- NH7 Weekender Pune, India
PUBLICATIONS
- 2006 What is Publication Design by Rotovision publishers, UK
- 2007 Instant Graphics by Rotovision publishers, UK
- 2007 Young Asian Designers by Daab publishers, Germany
- 2007 iSH Magazine, Singapore
- 2008 Asia Pacific Design Annual by Sandu publishing, China
- 2008 Signs and Symbols by Rotovision publishers, UK
- 2009 Design No Hikidashi by Graphic-sha publishers, Japan
- 2009 Feedback by Index books, Spain
- 2009 Celebration Graphics by Rotovision publishers, UK
- 2009 Design for Special Events by Rockport publishers, USA
- 2009 New York Type Directors Club 29 by Harper Collins, USA
- 2009 1000 more Graphic Elements by Rockport publishers, USA
- 2009 Good Design: Deconstructing form and function by Rockport Publishers, USA
- 2010 For a Good Cause by Index books, Spain
- 2010 Graphic Design Inspirations by Daab publishers, Germany
- 2010 Brochures 9 by Rockport Publishers, USA
- 2011 The Best of Cover Design by Rockport publishers, USA
- 2011 Etapes magazine, France
- 2012 Asia Pacific Design 8 by Sandu publishing, China
- 2013 Rolling Stone Magazine
- 2014 Asia Pacific Design 10 by Sandu publishing, China
- 2015 Overdrive Magazine, India
- 2016 Asia Pacific Design 12 by Sandu publishing, China
- 2016 BBC Topgear online
AWARDS
New York Type Directors Club
Award for Excellence in Typography, 2008
Creativity Annual Design
Gold Award, 2008
Creativity Annual Design
Platinum Award, 2008
Kyoorius Design Award
Print design, 2007
Shankar’s International Painting Competition
Silver Medal awarded by the President of India, 1992
HONORARY JURY
Asia Pacific Design Almanac by Sandu Cultural Media, China
Honorary design expert and judge on the editorial board for Asia Pacific Design Annual, Chinas largest design publication house.
TESTIMONIAL
” Vivid, lush, mystical – the work of UMS often has a painterly quality, using vibrant colors, brushstrokes, splashes, explosions, intersections and intricate line work. The work achieves an aesthetic level that has few peers. It is grounded in ancient Indian symbolism and traditions reinterpreted for application. if the work defies description or category, its is because it is multilingual. His approach is the foundation for superb work that communicates with audiences in many places who speak many languages. A polyglot ? No. UMS is universally articulate, significant, evocative and real.”
– from the book “Good Design” by Rockport Publishers, USA.
INDIAN SYMBOLISM IN MY GRAPHIC DESIGN
Social Entrepreneurship in India book:
The Mandala symbol expresses the concept of ‘Growth and Transformation’.
The book uses a hand drawn ‘Mandala’ organic growth motif as the main visual element.
The organic motif represents the grassroots work social entrepreneurs do. Its mandala like
structure expanding outwards show growth and radiance and are derived from indian
iconography. This mandala starts as a green dot also representing the ‘Bindu’ or seed which
is the origin of all cosmic creation in Indian thought. The organic motif is printed on several
pages and concentric circles are cut into the pages, as the reader turns the pages the mandala
grows from a small seed to a large transformation in society.
Lotus Book.
The lotus motif expresses the concept of ‘Knowledge and Learning’
The design uses the traditional India Motif of the Lotus as a metaphor of ‘Gyana’ which is
knowledge and learning. The design uses a central radiating form as sacred Indian geometry
showing that everything originates from the centre of the lotus. It fuses indo-islamic artwork
styles with futuristic op-art motifs. Depending how the book cover is folded multiple forms
of the lotus are seen thus offering different views showing that knowledge is eternal.
Scriptwriting Typography.
The abstract typography expresses the concept of ‘Order and Chaos’
When the piece is inserted into its slipcase one can read the word ‘SCRIPT’, but when it is
taken out of its case it morphs into an abstract typographical composition of various Indian
scripts showing the rich diversity of the various languages in India and the cosmic
phenomenon of forming of Order from Chaos of typographic scripts.