Do you have a story to tell?
Then look no further.

studio Asja Keeman designs and gives advice for stories that inspire, move you, and stay with you. I design for cultural institutions, organizations, and individuals.

Type

Asja Keeman, Portrait by Repko van Husen and Eline Vis

about

I am a freelance graphic designer focusing on multimedia projects, communication design, exhibition design, publications, and photo books that engage with international political and social issues. Such as but not limited to, displacement, migration, collective trauma, inclusivity, and women's rights.

While in Jordan working in the Jerash refugee camp for a project for Disarming Design from Palestine, I experienced my own freedom of movement for the first time. As a Dutch woman, I could move freely in and around the camp. This is one of the many barriers that the residents of the Jerash camp have to deal with on a daily basis, but it did not apply to me.  It gave me an insight into daily life in a refugee camp.

These and many other experiences gave me a sense of responsibility to help tell stories like this. I feel it is important to give these people a voice, as they often aren’t in the position to tell their stories.

In order to do this, I bring together the right expertise for each case, from my own all-round network, the client and the field.

 

Learn more about my vision

studio Asja Keeman, De Monsterkamer 2021

how I see it

The challenges with these projects are that they are about complex issues that are often abstract to a lot of people. However, by narrating the experiences of one person, I do not speak about the "refugee crisis" but instead of this person, I speak for example, about Thana Faroq, a Yemeni documentary photographer who applied for asylum in the Netherlands. Not only does this give clarity to these often complex issues but this also makes it more accessible.

With this personal approach, they start a journey of discovery within themselves; your story becomes their story.
 

Awards

2020

2nd by International Photography Awards (IPA)

2nd place self publishing

2019

The Dutch photo book Prize: best debut by Fotofestival Naarden

Best Debut

2018

Loglisted for the One World Media Awards

Loglisted

2018

Shortlisted for the CIVIS Media Prijze Europe

Shortlisted

2018

Shortlisted for the Katar Information is Beautiful Awards

Shortlisted

2017

1 of the 33 Best Dutch Books Designs

Best Dutch Book Designs