Ordinary People is a multi-disciplinary design studio specializing in brand strategy and art direction.
Founded in 2006, we work across various media on cultural and commercial projects. We explore contemporary cultures and visual language utilizing modern technologies.
Through diverse and active experiments, we design unique ways of communication.
TEAM
Co-Founder
Seyong Ahn
Jin Kang
Jaeha Lee
Jeongmin Seo
Current Member
Suhyun Han
Jaehee Hwang
Seoyoung Jeong
Sungwoo Jung
Soyeon Lee
Soyeong Park
Past Member
Seungmi Baek (2015–2021)
Jihyang Lim (2018–2022)
Jung Ah Hwang (2020–2022)
Jeongeun Choe (2021–2023)
And our collaborators
SERVICES
Art Direction
Books and Publications
Brand Manuals
Brand Strategy
Concept Development
Content Strategy
Editorial Design
Event Design
Exhibition Design
Identity Design
Installation Design
Naming
Merchandises
Motion Graphics
Packaging and Product
Pattern Design
Visual System
Wayfinding and Signage
Web and Digital Experience
SELECTED CLIENTS
Arco Art Center
Asia Culture Center
Big Hit Music
CA Korea
CJ E&M
Club Med
Cogason
DOOSAN Art Center
Gear3
Gyeonggi Cultural Foundation
Hybe
HYUKOH
Hyundai Card
Hyundai Department Store
Hyundai Motors
innisfree
Jeju Beer
Korea Arts Management Service
KT Corporation
KT&G Sangsang Madang
LEENALCHI
Leeum Museum of Art
LEWITT
Lotte World
MBC
MMCA
Nam June Paik Art Center
National Folk Museum of Korea
National Hangeul Museum
National Theater of Korea
Naver
Netflix
Playlist
Pyeongchang Biennale
Samsung Card
Samsung Electronics
SeMA
Seoul Design Foundation
Seoul Independent Film Festival
Seoul Museum of History
Seoul National University
Shinsegae Gallery
SM Entertainment
STANDARD.A
Typojanchi
Uncommon Eyewear
Watcha
YG Entertainment
SELECTED PROJECTS
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS
Solo Exhibitions
⌜Superposition⌟, 29 Nov–21 Dec 2019, RE:-!PLAT, Seoul
⌜Everyday Graphic Calendar 2019⌟, 1 Mar–31 Mar 2019, DDP CREA, Seoul
⌜Everyday, Graphic, and Calendar⌟, 28 Jan–10 Feb 2019, Print Gallery, Tokyo
⌜Everyday Graphic Calendar 2019⌟, 12 Dec–16 Dec 2018, einBuch.haus, Berlin
⌜Everyday Graphic Calendar 2019⌟, 11 Dec–16 Dec 2018, Enokojima Art, Culture and Creative Center, Osaka Prefecture, enoco, Osaka
⌜Everyday Graphic Calendar 2019⌟, 1 Dec–2 Dec 2018, A Very Tropical Xmas Art Market, The Factory Contemporary Arts Centre, Ho Chi Minh
⌜24 OPEN⌟, 17 Sep–8 Oct 2016, Mmm Records, Seoul
⌜Everyday Graphic Calendar⌟, 22 Dec 2014–17 Jan 2015, DPPA, Seoul
⌜#187–#198⌟, 27 May–1 Jun 2014, The Gallery, Seoul
⌜The Bremen⌟, 2–13 Sep 2011, Brownbreath Wall / 4–10 Nov 2011, Platoon Kunsthalle, Seoul
Group Exhibitions
⌜Flow: graphics in motion - OCT-LOFT Creative Festival 2022⌟, 9 Nov 2022–5 Jan 2023, C2 Space, North District, OCT-LOFT, Shenzhen
⌜Do You Miss The Future?⌟, 9 Dec 2021–31 Mar 2022, CCA Hyundai Motor Studio, Busan
⌜Around Seoul* Independent Graphic Design⌟, 21 Jan–6 Feb 2020, CCA Hubbell Street Galleries, San Francisco
⌜Korean Gardens A mystic promenade⌟, 18 Apr–19 May 2019, Hangaram Arts Center Museum, Seoul
⌜Gold+Retriever⌟, 18 Jan–4 Mar 2018, Lotte Gallery, Seoul
⌜New Public Design 2017: Hello, Stranger⌟, 10–30 Nov 2017, Culture Station Seoul 284, Seoul
⌜Korea: Design + Poster⌟, 4 Mar–16 Jul 2017, Die Neue Sammlung—The Design Museum, München
⌜Pyeongchang’s Spring⌟, 25 Apr–9 May 2017, Culture Station Seoul 284, Seoul
⌜AGI Special Project “I LOVE SEOUL”⌟, 25–29 Sep 2016, DDP, Seoul
⌜Korea Now! Craft, Design, Fashion and Graphic Design in Korea⌟, 19 Sep 2015–3 Jan 2016, Musée des Arts décoratifs, Paris
⌜Typojanchi 2015: The 4th International Typography Biennale⌟, 11 Nov–27 Dec 2015, Culture Station Seoul 284, Seoul
⌜Graphic Design Festival Scotland 2015⌟, 19–25 Oct 2015, The Lighthouse, Glasgow
⌜XS: Young Studio Collection⌟, 1–31 Oct 2015, Ujeongguk, Seoul
⌜Kill the Fathers: Posters from South Korea⌟, Special exhibition of Weltformat 15, 26 Sep–4 Oct 2015, Lucerne
⌜CROSS OVER⌟, 20 Jul–31 Aug 2013, Samwon Paper Gallery, Seoul
SELECTED AWARDS
Korea Design Award/Brand Category, 2023
iF Design Award: Communication Design/Product and Service Branding, 2022
iF Design Award: Communication Design/Typography and Signage, 2022
Graphic Design Festival Scotland, 2017
Tokyo Type Directors Club, 2017
Graphic Design Festival Scotland, 2015
Moscow Golden Bee International Graphic Design Biennale, 2014
iF Design Award: Communication Design, 2014
Trienále Plagátu Trnava Poster Triennial, 2012
TALKS & WORKSHOPS
Workshop, ⌜〇〇 Work Titles⌟, 19–23 Oct 2022, Seoul National Univ., Seoul
Lecture, 10 Aug 2022, Konkuk Univ., <Somoim>, Online (Zoom)
Lecture, 17 May 2022, Hongik Univ., Seoul
Talk, 30 July 2021, Hongik Univ., <Ieumdari>, Online (Zoom)
Lecture, 11 Dec 2020, Samsung Electronics, Seoul
Lecture, 1 Dec 2020, Dankook Univ. communication Dpt. group <Ding>, Online (Zoom)
Lecture, 08 Oct 2020, Hongik Univ., Seoul
Workshop, ⌜Summer Vacation Workshop: Book, Graphic, Letter⌟, 5 Aug 2020, whatreallymatters, Online (Zoom)
Talk, ⌜Two Pages Lockdown⌟, 11 May 2020, Two Pages Project, Online (Instargram Live)
Talk, ⌜Design Diplomacy⌟, 7 May 2020, Foreign Policy, Online (Instargram Live)
Workshop, ⌜Shadow Boxing⌟, 12–14 Feb 2020, California College of Arts, San Francisco
Talk, ⌜Superposition⌟, 5 Dec 2019, Re:plat, Seoul
Talk, ⌜Seoul x Player⌟, 27 Nov 2019, Seoul Foundation for Arts and Culture, Seoul
Talk, ⌜Seoul x Player⌟, 19 Nov 2019, Hongik Univ., Seoul
Lecture, 15 Nov 2019, Seoyeong Univ., Paju
Studio Visit/Talk, 31 Aug 2019, HSE Art & Design School, from Moscow
Studio Visit/Workshop, 18 Jul 2019, California College of Arts, from San Francisco
Studio Visit/Talk, 17 Jul 2019, Jeonbuk National Univ., from Jeonju
Workshop, ⌜2019 Design Camp⌟, 14–18 Aug 2019, Designer School Academia, Seoul
Lecture, 1 May 2019, University of Ulsan, Ulsan
Talk, ⌜Glimpsing the Everyday Life of Designers in Japanese and Korean Calendars: Day-to-Day Graphic Design⌟, 2 Feb 2019, Idea Magazine, Tokyo
Lecture, 18 Dec 2018, SungKyunKwan Univ., Seoul
Talk, 14 Dec 2018, Enokojima Art, Culture and Creative Center, Osaka Prefecture, Osaka
Lecture, 10 Dec 2018, Osaka Univ., Osaka
Talk, ⌜A Very Tropical Xmas Art Market⌟, 2 Dec 2018, Ho Chi Minh
Talk, ⌜Designer's Taste⌟, 28 Apr 2018, Design Spectrum, Seoul
Lecture, ⌜Hanul seminar⌟, 11 Nov 2017, Hanul, Seoul
Talk, ⌜Typojanchi 2017: Mohm—Graphic Identity⌟, 28 Oct 2017, Typojanchi 2017, Seoul
Studio Visit/Talk, 14 May 2017, Massachusetts College of Art and Design, from Boston
Talk, ⌜Spring of PyeongChang⌟, 28 Apr 2017, Korea Craft and Design Foundation, Seoul
Lecture, 1 Nov 2016, Sookmyung Women's Univ., Seoul
Lecture, 13 Oct 2016, Hongik Univ., Seoul
Talk, ⌜Creative Live 2016!: Designer & Studio⌟, 11 Oct 2016, Fast Campus, Seoul
Talk, ⌜Hot Cold Wet Dry⌟, 24 Sep 2016, AGI OPEN Seoul 2016, Seoul
FEATURED MEDIA
Book
⌜More is More⌟, p.9-24, Viction:ary, 2022
⌜From South Korea⌟, p.63-72, Counter-Print, 2022
⌜Hello, Stranger: From Public Design to New Public Design⌟, p.144–145/p.150, Hong C Communication, 2018
⌜The 12th Exhibition of Korean Society of Typography⌟, p.86–87, Korean Society of Typography, 2018
⌜Seoul Design Festival Young Retro⌟, p.178–179, Designhouse, 2018
⌜Graphic Fest⌟, p.178–181, Viction:ary, 2018
⌜Los Logos 8⌟, p.75/p.97, Gestalten, 2017
⌜Less is More⌟, p.202–205, Viction:ary, 2017
⌜An Incomplet List: Beijing⌟, p.19, Mediabus, 2016
⌜AGI Special Project “I LOVE SEOUL”⌟, p.133, AGI, 2016
⌜Catalogue: Extra Small (XS) Studios⌟, p.96–101, Propaganda, 2016
⌜Korea Now! in Paris - Korean Graphic Design Exhibition 2015⌟, p.100–103, Korea Crafts & Design Foundation, 2016
⌜Communicating Through Work⌟, p.230–273, G:book, 2015
⌜Korea now! craft, design, graphisme, mode⌟, p.212, Les Arts Décoratifs, 2015
⌜16si: J’s Spacetime⌟, Ahn Graphics, 2015
⌜Korea Now! Craft, Fashion and Graphic Design in Korea⌟, p.137, Korea Crafts & Design Foundation, 2015
⌜The Country of the Blind⌟, p.4/p.11, O’NewWall, 2015
⌜Young Creative Korea 2015⌟, p.152–157, D.NOMADE, 2015
⌜Hanzi・Kanji・Hanja⌟, p.97, Viction:ary, 2015
⌜Design Award Archive 2014⌟, p.32, Designhouse, 2014
⌜Type Plus [Unit 17]⌟, p.228–229, Unit Editions, 2014
⌜Designer's Typography Tales⌟, p.280–283, G:book, 2013
⌜Mangmangdaehae: Exploring Alternative Collectives⌟, p.41, The Dongduk Women's Univ. Department of Curatorial Studies and Art Management, 2012
⌜Fred Perry 50 Contemporary Artists⌟, p.66–69, Fred Perry Korea, 2012
Magazine
⌜Monthly Design⌟ 524, p.26/p.45, 2022
⌜Monthly Design⌟ 522, p.67, 2021
⌜IDEA magazine⌟ No.395, p.181, 2021
⌜WIRED⌟ 34, p.120, 2019
⌜Monthly Design - 2019 Korean Design Yearbook⌟ 498, 2019
⌜IDEA magazine⌟ No.385, p.179–185, 2019
⌜Esquire Korea⌟ No.280, p.55, 2019
⌜GQ Korea⌟ N°215, p.21, 2019
⌜Monthly Design⌟ 487, p.127/p.156, 2019
⌜Craft+Design⌟ No.033, p.47, 2018
⌜étapes:⌟ 243, p.197–203, 2018
⌜CA Magazine⌟ #238, p.11, 2018
⌜CA Magazine⌟ #241, p.64–66, 2018
⌜Your Seoul⌟ No.24, p.7, 2018
⌜Monthly Design⌟ 486, p.117/p.191, 2018
⌜Monthly Design⌟ 483, p.26, 2018
⌜BRUTUS⌟ May 2018, p.100, 2018
⌜IDEA magazine⌟ No.381, p.192, 2018
⌜Arena Homme+ Korea⌟ 145, p.127, 2018
⌜Monthly Design⌟ 474, p.111, 2017
⌜Monthly Design⌟ 472, p.10, 2017
⌜Gaji⌟ Volume 6, p.6–11, 2017
⌜BranD Magazine⌟ Issue 31, p.122–123, 2017
⌜Asiana⌟ no.337, p.74, 2017
⌜CA Magazine⌟ #230, p.16–17/p.32–33, 2017
⌜IdN Magazine⌟ Volume 24.2, p.111–113, 2017
⌜Urbänlike⌟ Issue No.34, p.93, 2016
⌜Monthly Design⌟ 462, p.110, 2016
⌜LUEL⌟ No.117, p.92, 2016
⌜Arena Homme+ Korea⌟ Issue 122, p.248–249, 2016
⌜Vogue Girl⌟ No.166, p.242, 2015
⌜Monthly Design⌟ 450, p.170, 2015
⌜Marie Claire⌟ No.273, p.236, 2015
⌜Vogue Girl⌟ No.165, p.258, 2015
⌜Dazed Korea⌟ Issue #89, p.56–57, 2015
⌜Chois gallery⌟ Sep 2015, p.20–21, 2015
⌜BranD Magazine⌟ Issue 22, p.182–187, 2015
⌜GRAPHIC⌟ #34, p.29–32, 2015
⌜art4d⌟ Issue 223, p.18, 2015
⌜LetterSeed 10: Jan Tschichold⌟, p.254–255, 2015
⌜NYLON Korea⌟ Issue 78, p.96, 2015
⌜Casa Living⌟ Issue 178, p.22, 2015
⌜Monthly Design⌟ 439, p.88-89, 2015
⌜Monthly Design⌟ 438, p.114, Dec 2014
⌜Chois gallery⌟, Dec 2014, p.208–209, 2014
⌜Eloquence⌟ 72, p.168–179, 2014
⌜Vogue Korea⌟ N°218, p.396, 2014
⌜Luxury⌟ 161, p.233, 2014
⌜CA Collection. 13: Graphic Design⌟, p.222–223, 2014
⌜Abraxas⌟ 20 ‘Interview One More Time’, p.226–234, 2014
⌜IdN Magazine⌟ Volume 21.4, p.76–79, 2014
⌜Monthly Design⌟ 422, p.58–59, 2013
⌜article⌟ #06, p.128–129, 2012
⌜Typographics Ti⌟ Issue 263, p.10, 2011
⌜g Colon⌟ vol. 41, p.38–43, 2010
Online
An update from Ordinary People on its recent design output, 2019
→It’s Nice That
Ordinary People, 2018
→The Design Kids
Ordinary People’s bubbly identity for a Seoul film festival, 2015
→It’s Nice That
Ordinary People, extraordinary work. We chat to the Seoul-based studio, 2015
→It’s Nice That