Alex Neff Email & Phone Number

Maple Ridge, British Columbia, Canada

As Artist in Residence, I am bringing my Drawing Thanks methodology to the City of Maple Ridge from 2024-2027. This work includes a multitude of portraits celebrating the Maple Ridge community, shared through process blogging and public installations. Throughout the residency, Drawing Thanks provides the local community with workshops and live events to complement the digital storytelling happening on the blog space with tangible in-person experiences.

Maple Ridge, British Columbia, Canada

As Event Supervisor, I lead front-of-house operations for events such as live music performances, dance recitals/competitions, film screenings and a multitude of community events. This role requires an eye for safety and Level 1 Training in First Aid. This role involves leading teams of volunteers and trained staff to provide a safe, informed, and engaging experience for patrons.

Vancouver, Canada Area

Through a combination of ink portraiture, interviews, and signature "thank-you notes," Drawing Thanks explores creativity and its power to build and nurture community. By highlighting the work and personalities of community-minded creatives throughout the City of Vancouver, this project explores ways in which individuals are connected and fighting the "isolated city" stigma. Drawing Thanks has since evolved to form partnerships and collaborations with Locals Lounge, A Better Life Foundation, West Coast Woodworks, City of Vancouver and more - with a book in development and new portraits and stories to come.

Burnaby, Bc

Provides design, copywriting, and complimentary services with an emphasis on socio-economic impact, accessibility, and implications on human life.Projects include: Cause+Affect - Projects: Nada, On The Table BC, Odd Society, BC Artscape - Role: Copywriter, DesignerGreen Coast Rubbish - Project: Environmental Impact Report - Role: Copywriter, DesignerMRG Events- Project: Translink's Transport 2050- Role: Interior Designer, 3D ModellerBC Small Housing Summit- Project: Promotional Videos - Role: Illustrator, Animator, Video EditorEcotrust Canada - Project: West Coast Innovation Lab Developmental Evaluation Report - Role: Co-Copywriter, DesignerConscious Evolver Enterprises- Projects: Conscious Evolver Manual, Conscious Evolver Poster Series- Role: Graphic DesignerIntern Techwear - Projects: Duty Pack Promotional Material, Material/Fabric Database, Supplier/Manufacturer Interviews - Role: Copywriter, Graphic Designer, Interviewer, Systems Development

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Upon joining PLAN in the role of Coordinator in July 2021, Alex found an opportunity to marry their design-thinking and lived-experience to support others in finding their network and amplifying the strong voice of family leadership.Alex is an older sibling to two inspiring sisters – Jenna and Kaity. Jenna was born with a mitochondrial disorder and Chromosome Deletion. Alex and his sisters have always felt a strong sense of community belonging, but know that for many families, this has unfortunately not been the case.Alex acts as the first voice people meet when they engage with PLAN and is the source of updates and information for family members, the board of directors, community partners and everyone belonging to PLAN's vast network. At the heart of Alex's work is convening groups, conversations and events, gathering and sharing stories, and helping PLAN to stay connected to each other, generous supporters and communities.

In a response to the inability to publicly convene due to COVID-19, this position allows for the skills Ideveloped during time as Director of Community Engagement to be applied within a digital space. As host to events such as "Locals Lounge Gig Night" on Twitch, my role is to share a behind the scenes look at our online live-music shows, where Patreon Subscribers and ticket holders can go "backstage" to talk to the musicians and learn even more about the people behind the music while supporting these local artists during the pandemic.

Vancouver, Canada Area

As well as producing ink portraits to highlight the stories of participating musicians and designing promotional materials, the role of Director of Community Engagement involved mailing list management, online content sharing through digital platforms, and external communications.

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

As General Manager, I helped transition 43 East Hastings, home of Save On Meats, into Hasty—a fast-service bistro-style operation located in the former "Snug" space adjacent to the main diner. This pivot allowed for the diner to thrive as a social gathering space for events such as Greasy Spoon, Plenty of Plates, and Late Night Snack—a bi-weekly drag show featuring amazing local talents. I found opportunities in this role to use my unique skill-set, applying design, spatial circulation knowledge, understanding of systems, and human resource management—paired with deep passions for accessibility, inclusivity, and community building. Being part of this transition at an early stage allowed me to best utilize my abilities through design-thinking, bringing additional value and resources to the operation beyond my job description.This position taught me much about the hardships faced in the DTES, but also the resilience of this strong community. This role refined my ability to respond to crises and understanding of how to engage and empower my team.

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

During my time at ZAS Architects + Interiors, I was fortunate enough to work on a number of projects which helped define my sense of purpose as a socio-economically and environmentally driven designer. Working on these projects concurrently provided ample opportunities to cross-examine the implications design has on human experience and navigation in a variety of different occupancy types.NADA.- Opportunity: As Vancouver's first zero-waste grocery store, this venture was a very experimental one. Due to new user-procedures involving taring, bulk-product sales, and weighing of goods, accessibility and navigation had to be addressed through layout and graphics. Nada is a company which is very engaged in their community. Their flagship store served as an opportunity to engage with community beyond operating hours—providing space for yoga classes, film screenings, and other gatherings.- Design Solutions: Wayfinding and navigation became my top priority on this project. After a number of meetings and discussions with invested parties, product sequencing and an intuitive user-exerience was successfully achieved with modular shelving capable of a 30-minute take-down for community events.BC Artscape- Opportunity: This cultural community hub required space for artists, community groups, and cultural organizations to rely on as an affordable, welcome location to practice their creative works within Chinatown. Based in the Sun Wah Centre on Keefer Street, this project involved a variety of large open spaces that once served as hawker-style food-courts which needed to be scaled down to appropriately sized, private work-areas.- Design Solutions: As my work on BC Artscape was done during the preliminary design stage, it was primarily focused on site-analysis, user-interviews, and spatial design. Understanding the human dimension and user requirements allowed for effective preliminary designs to be established which considered user comfort and accessibility.

Maple Ridge

This experience provided an opportunity to develop service, planning, and design skills in a fun, collaborative environment. Initiatives such as organizing and leading coffee tastings, info sessions and quarterly meetings resulted in receiving "Partner of the Quarter" for Quarter 3 of the 2013 fiscal year. Design opportunities were abundant through developing seasonal presentations of products and signage. My team's faith in my growing design skill-set allowed me to tailor this position to apply my unique skillset to the benefit of the store.