That’s “hello” in Lao. Nice to meet you. My name is Nor (naw) Sanavongsay (să·nă·vōng·saī) and I’m a Product Designer / Story Artist living in the San Francisco Bay area. I enjoy combining storytelling to all the products I create. I design, make illustrations and write a blog about it all.
Comic Strips
Making fun of life in a series of panels.
Some Thoughts
Sharing what I've learned throughout the years
In its tenth-year anniversary, I wanted to give you all a peek behind the scenes at how the book came about. I’ll talk about the inspiration behind the story, the creative process, what role illustration has on the story, the publishing process, and what I’ve learned through making A Sticky…
The best books for children help them learn about the world, explore their feelings and emotions, and relate to others. A good book can also teach children how to solve problems independently or explore their creativity in an imaginary world! Children tend to have very active minds, making it difficult…
My career started in 1997; As a webmaster, web designer, interactive designer, new media designer, flash developer, front-end developer, product designer, and visual designer. I’ve always been a designer, but I touched a lot of code in the process. I wasn’t afraid to learn new things. Learning is what I’m…
A long time ago…
As a young refugee from a civil war in Laos, my family and I arrived in Tennessee, sponsored by the First Presbyterian Church of Kingsport. I found my love for art through something I had never seen or believed could have existed before my arrival—television. I was enthralled and fascinated by the superhero Samurai from Super Friends. His powers were inspired by ancient Japanese mythology and folklore, and he was known for his strong moral code, loyalty, and martial arts skills. This love led me to constantly try new artistic styles and techniques.
My sponsor, Bodie, teaching baseball.
Later, I got an illustration and digital media degree from Northern Illinois University, using my physical skills in the digital world. Again, with the help of technology, I made my art come alive, making an impact with each piece and showing them off through my own website. I learned to create websites by viewing the sources of other websites to get an idea of how they’re built. I like to break things and see how they work to make something new for myself.
My portfolio shows my journey as an artist and demonstrates my dedication and hard work. From my early days drawing superheroes to my current position as a digital artist, my love for art has never faded. My work represents my experiences and the people who inspired me.
I’m excited to connect with other artists and people who love art. To improve at digital art, I take online classes often and teach workshops for others. You can find me on social media with the username @ArtofNor.
