Brittany
Costa Rican designer Irene Arteaga has built a career at the intersection of branding, storytelling, and visual culture. Growing up in a creative household surrounded by painting, photography and music, she developed an early appreciation for aesthetics, not just as a form of beauty but as a way to shape experiences and perspectives. This foundation led her to study advertising design in Costa Rica before pursuing a postgraduate degree in Art Direction in Buenos Aires. Immersed in the city’s dynamic creative scene, she refined her approach to visual storytelling and deepened her understanding of design as a strategic discipline.
Arteaga’s career began in advertising, where she worked at leading agencies for nearly six years. The fast-paced nature of the industry sharpened her ability to translate abstract concepts into compelling visual narratives. However, a desire for deeper creative exploration led her to transition into branding, first at Gensler, where she became Brand Design Lead and later an Associate. This shift marked a turning point, allowing her to work on large-scale identity projects that were both conceptual and highly strategic. After three years of running her own studio, she was offered the opportunity to move to New York and join Savvy Studio, a firm known for its refined and thoughtful approach to design.
Now based in New York, Arteaga works across industries spanning hospitality, art, and design, collaborating with clients in cities such as New York, Los Angeles, Copenhagen, and Miami. Seeing her work come to life in New York, a city that constantly pushes creative boundaries, has been one of the most rewarding aspects of her career. Among her most significant projects has been designing two books for Danish design brand &Tradition, fulfilling a long-held dream of working in book design. She was also featured in La Tina, a publication celebrating Latin American women in design, an acknowledgment that reinforced her commitment to amplifying diverse voices in the industry.
Parallel to her design career, Arteaga has maintained a personal photography practice for over a decade. Every day, she captures a single image, documenting moments both ordinary and extraordinary. What began as an intimate act of self-reflection has evolved into an ongoing archive, shaping her perspective on time, memory, and the power of observation. For her, photography serves as a form of meditation, an exercise in paying attention and finding beauty in the unexpected.
Looking ahead, Arteaga is interested in integrating photography more intentionally into her design practice, exploring the intersection of branding, imagery, and storytelling. She believes that the most compelling creative work emerges where disciplines overlap, and she remains committed to learning, collaborating, and staying engaged with an ever-evolving visual landscape.
