Still in her final year of university, Melbourne-based designer Shene Pao is already making her mark. From a last-minute subject switch in high school to an ongoing passion for decolonising design, Shene’s journey is defined by instinct, curiosity, and courage.
She blends self-reflection with strong critique of traditional design education and pushes for more cultural inclusivity in creative spaces. Her work draws deeply from her Chinese heritage, and her voice is clear, purposeful, and energising. “How could you possibly forget me?” she says. We don’t think we will.
Can you tell us a little about your first few steps in your career. Was there a moment or experience when you realised this was what you'd do as a career?
I’m still only in my last year of Uni so I'd like to say that I haven't had much of a career as I’m still so young in the industry. However, I do remember the pivotal movement for me when I realised that I wanted to be a designer was when I was in Year 12. For most of my time in high school I was a media student since I have an avid love for films (as most people do). But for some unknown reason, even to me, I dropped the subject last minute and had this sort of unexplainable pull that I should do the Visual Communication elective instead.
Which was such a drastic thing for me to do at that time because of course doing media for years, why would I randomly start a new elective with a whole new set of skills to learn in my final year of high school?? But as fate would have it, I just fell in love with the subject and started realising that omg hey I actually could do this for a career, something that I had never even thought was a career that I could pursue. And as my lovely Viscom teacher Ms Fischer signed in my book at the end of the year, I was an absolute trailblazer starting in that class, which is something that I have never forgotten.
What lessons from your career have most shaped your style and approach?
Tell us about the core values or philosophies that guide your creative practice.
I think that the philosophies that drive my creative practice right now is to try and explore more of my Chinese Culture in what I design and create. Being adopted (though my adoptive parents are Malaysian) I sometimes feel disconnected from my roots and native tongue, especially growing up in white suburban Australia where I felt like I had to assimilate to the lack of culture around me. But now being a young adult who is a lot more confident and sure of herself, I find that I’ve been really trying to advocate for culturally connected design in my work and in work that I find inspiring.
Though I think this is often echoed by many people, I think that constantly staying curious and being open to learn new things is also crucial in the creative field. I’ve been working a lot on not being such a perfectionist when I create and design and to just make things and get ideas out even if it's shit because that's the only way I'll ever grow to be better. I think a lot of us young designers, especially in the way we are taught in university, really prevents us from exploring our creativity and what we put out, in the fear of not getting good grades. And I think that mentality and pressure we put on ourselves is such a stifling mind set to have. Hence that is something I’m really trying to break free from in my creative practice as well.
What needs to change, so emerging and under-represented creative professionals have more opportunity, are seen and heard?
Boy do I have a lot to say. Last semester I wrote a Literature Review on the topic of decolonising design so I'm pretty passionate about this topic but I’ll try and keep it more brief. (Article is on my LinkedIn if you want to read the full thing)
Essentially I think first of all, the way we teach design in education needs to be reformed. Right now design education centres around the history and impact of Eurocentric design influences such as the Bauhaus and the western idea of what is considered “good design.” And it's not to say that we should completely revoke the credibility of their impact, however design education needs to have a shift in focus to also incorporate how design is considered in other cultures, e.g. Indigenous visual cultures have also been present for thousands of years, but why are they “still related to ‘special topics’ classes instead of serving as foundational principles to the standard design curricula. I remember when we were studying Design history in class, there was ONE week that talked about Chinese Design History and the rest was about the Swiss Type movement. What about Ghanaian textiles? Or other forms of design that are passed down vernacularly?
And I think this form of white centred design is still heavily present, from the people in education, right down to the panels who judge design awards. Though I think it's slowly changing, I rarely see celebrated POC designers in Australia in top design roles. And it’s like you’re telling me, with a place like Melbourne that is now so multicultural, you couldn't find a SINGLE talented POC designer to be on a panel when judging and talking about design?? Like get real. I know plenty.
Therefore it's important for more under-represented creative professionals– who have more culture to provide insights into different forms of design practices–to be seen and heard in these design spaces. So that young POC like myself can feel represented and be inspired to be a part of the ever evolving form that is design.
My Literature Review can be found here.
How important is it that creative professionals find their unique voice?
Looking ahead, what do you think are the key factors that will influence change for creative professionals?
How much does your city influence your work?
How much does your culture influence your work?
Tell us some of your favourite, creative professionals and inspiring places in your city!
What should emerging creative professionals keep in mind as they begin their design career?
Definitely being culturally aware of what is going on with the world. I think that if you're creative you can't just be blissfully unaware. Especially someone who's a designer, how do you expect to put out good work if you don't know the audience and world you're designing for.
Be genuine, kind and positive. PUT YOURSELF OUT THERE. Make your own luck.