Life & Work with Brittney Au

Today we’d like to introduce you to Brittney Au.

Hi Brittney, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I grew up in Arcadia, and always had a passion for art, even at a young age. My mom enrolled me in so many extracurricular activities, but none of them stuck. She noticed how I’d constantly draw on napkins at restaurants, which is why she finally enrolled me in fine art classes, and I fell in love. I was considered the black sheep in my family because I wanted to pursue art as a career. Like most traditional Asian families, everyone else was in banking, law, or medicine, and none of that interested me – not in the slightest. My love for art and design continued and grew as I got older, and I eventually enrolled at ArtCenter where I majored in graphic design and minored in Designmatters. Through Designmatters, I got to work with organizations such as Arthritis Foundation and Homeboy Industries, which really empowered me to design for social change. After working at multiple branding and social media agencies, I finally landed my dream job as Art Director at Halo Top International, which is where I am now.

Little did I know, my experience designing for social change would come into play outside of college. Devastated by the recent anti-Asian hate crimes, I felt compelled to contribute in a greater way to the AAPI community. I was tired of feeling powerless and helpless, and wanted to leverage my platform to create change. Because SGV is home to one of the largest Asian populations in Southern California, I felt that this area needed an initiative here to not only unify the community, but to establish a sense of security and protection.

Given the recent attacks across the country and even in communities within SGV, I grew concerned for the elders that walk the streets of San Gabriel Valley daily – whether it be carrying groceries home, or just going on their morning walks. Inspired by Compassion in Oakland, I founded Compassion in SGV with the help and guidance of my close friend Phoebe, and we started offering free chaperone services to anyone who felt unsafe in the community. Currently, I serve as the Founder and Creative Director of Compassion in SGV, and work with a leadership team of sixteen wonderful volunteers that are all donating their time and talent to keep our communities and its members safe. Our organization is about three months old, but we already have over 200 volunteers and an overwhelming amount of support from city officials, community members, and numerous small businesses. We hope to continue spreading the message of Stop Asian Hate, and provide an overall sense of security and unity through the spirit of togetherness.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
There have definitely been many bumps in the road, as a designer, but also as an organization. Nothing has come easy, but it definitely feels worth it.

As a designer, I’ve worked at agencies that weren’t necessarily the best fit, I’ve gotten laid off due to COVID-19 not once – but twice from the same employer, and I’ve also had to be the entire creative team, but I take everything as a learning experience. Designers are expected to wear many hats, but burnout is real, and that’s not something a lot of agencies acknowledge. Design doesn’t just happen at the press of a button – it takes time, research, trial and error. Realistic expectations need to be set in order to thrive and grow in any creative environment. At the end of the day, I learned so much valuable information at each job and I don’t regret any of it. Ultimately, you have to realize your worth.

As an organization, we are super reactive and we’re a team of problem solvers. Our first canvass was definitely difficult. We initially thought we should be speaking to elders, but after spending a day doing that, we realized that culturally, it was going to be extremely hard to offer assistance to a generation that was not used to accepting any help at all, much less trust a group of young strangers. We refocused our efforts and started talking to young people because those are the people who are concerned for their family members. We felt that if someone were to hear about Compassion in SGV from a concerned loved one, they would be more inclined to use our free chaperone service. Since then, we’ve seen a lot more success during our canvasses and in overall outreach.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am a branding enthusiast, storyteller, and problem solver with a love for all things creative. Currently, I am an Art Director for Halo Top International. I specialize in branding and really love working with food because you can really have fun with it. I love giving brands a voice. Aside from design, I have a passion for interior design and actually remodeled mine & my boyfriend’s home a few years ago. I also taught myself how to do nails and am in the process of starting my own press on nail business. I’m constantly creating – I love being creative in all aspects of my life, whether it’s cooking, interior design/renovating, nail art, or even creating content for my Instagram. Instagram has always served as another creative outlet and I love applying my own visual aesthetic to my feed.

I am also Compassion in SGV’s Creative Director, which has been really gratifying. As I mentioned before, I was part of a program called Designmatters in college, which is where art & design education meets social change. It was always my dream to design for social change at a professional level, but that was never something that I came across in my personal career. Being able to apply what I’ve learned throughout my career to Compassion in SGV has not only been gratifying but also super empowering. I love that we’re using design as a positive force in our community, and I’m really proud of the work we’ve done in just three months! It’s truly incredible to see everyone come together in support of this cause. Currently, we’re working on planning our rally, which is coming up on May 22nd at Vincent Lugo Park. Our goal is to amplify AAPI voices, and bring our community together in solidarity to Stop Asian Hate.

What sort of changes are you expecting over the next 5-10 years?
As technology advances, we have more tools at our fingertips than ever before. Technology is pushing design away from more traditional tools and into a virtual world. This means augmented reality will become more common, and designers will have more expressive ways of sharing their vision through things like immersive experiences. The way we consume and deliver information is changing just as quickly as technology is advancing – it feels more personalized and adaptive.

Contact Info:

• Website: brittneyau.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/brittiepoo
• Other: compassioninsgv.org | instagram.com/compassioninsgv

Image Credits
Compassion in SGV