Usually we write up an introduction to our Pep Rallies, articles highlighting meetup cities. This time, we didn’t have to! Thank you to the crew at Provectus for tackling the entire piece, start to finish.
Nicknamed Ukraine’s southern Palmyra, Odessa, Ukraine, has a long history of being known as a vibrant city. Its cosmopolitan nature gives the city’s citizens an authentic image, style of behavior, and even a unique mentality. There is this great twist in everything and design is no exception. Odessa has always been different, and proud of it!
This year Provectus’s Dribbble designers will be gathering on August 15 in Odessa. Provectus’s very own beloved George Frigo and Elena Mikheeva alongside other seasoned designers like Lidya Bogdanovich and Sementiy Lobach will deliver design swag right before we get down to networking.
Tell us what you love about Odessa.
Totally authentic. It really expresses the city’s pace and character – dynamic, emotional, southern, funny, and naturally creative. The play of the lights, people going by, and the richly colored sky above the sea are just breathtaking! Simply open your eyes, listen to the sounds around – and bam, you’re full of ideas!
The design scene has always been busy. A lot of very talented people here, indeed. There are numerous art schools, a few really great design courses from renowned people, some killer design studios, street art movements, and a super-interesting underground design scene. We’re one of the top cities across Ukraine by the number of Dribbble designers. And proud of it!
Tell us about Provectus - things you like about working there, how it fits into the life of Odessa.
We love the urban design community. We keep in touch and exchange ideas on a regular basis. There are a whole lot of local meetups where we hang out and … just be creative. Any individual worth their salt on the scene, whether it’s another designer or client, knows someone from Provectus’ Design Studio ;).
At Provectus, design is considered to be a key factor, and our designers work not only out of Odessa, but from our offices in Palo Alto as well.
And, of course it’s all a real pleasure. Even when the dynamic business keeps us busy, we always find time for play. Because that’s what a designer is to us – the right combination of hard work and hard play.
Choose three shots from Provectus Dribbblers, and tell us what’s going on.
Alexander Khitruk, Animated Booking Form, above left.
A successful experience of creating Material Design animation for a live app, and a useful one, too. The shot really sticks with the Material Design principles, and looks splendid.
George Frigo, Pull to refresh, above center.
I like inventing something unusual and applying it in life. It was a rainy day, and some eerie music was playing in my headphones. That’s how this shot came up.
Elena Mikheeva, News icon, above right.
This is an icon for a news iOS app. Even though I created it in the early days of iOS 7 it looks quite flat. The cool thing is that its design appeared by itself – the whole concept came to my mind in an instant.
Choose three shots from Odessa designers you admire, and tell us why you chose each one.
Bogdan Maksimchuk, Ukrainian Dribbble Meetup, above left.
It’s been great to work with Bogdan at Provectus for almost two years. He always finds unique, creative approaches to any task. The title shot for Dribbble Meetup 2014, with the traditional Ukrainian Vyshyvanka, is a perfect case. [Ed. Note: Vyshyvanka is traditional Ukrainian clothing featuring traditional embroidery.]
Lydia Bogdanovich, Winter Fox, above center.
Lydia is very talented. UI/UX, character design, animation, icons, hand drawings – all in her bag. Always top notch!
Gregory Kozhemyak, Codename “DogFight” Icon, above right.
Gregory creates amazing illustrations and characters, and he’s an expert in all kinds of animation. His portfolio is so full of great works that choosing a single one is a challenging task indeed.
For more armchair travel adventures, read Pep Rally: Philadelphia and Pep Rally: Paris. To find out if there’s a meetup near you, visit Dribbble Meetups.
Find more Meetups stories on our blog Courtside. Have a suggestion? Contact stories@dribbble.com.
