Areeb Tariq

designer behind Ajeeb Studio

Compiled from 1 recorded interview. Every statement below is drawn from the passage cited beside it.

Areeb Tariq is a designer who runs Ajeeb Studio, a studio that helps very small businesses. He was born in Dubai, lived in Saudi Arabia for 16 years, and later moved to Pakistan. He studied visual arts and communication design in North Cyprus and has been teaching since the start of COVID.

Early life and background

Tariq was born in Dubai and then lived in Saudi Arabia for the next 16 years. He attended a Pakistani O-Level school. He says he was not good at formal studies at school, but he was good at debates, sports and football. [1]

Tariq says his father has worked in finance all his life, at a trading company. Before he moved to Pakistan, Tariq visited the country during summers. When he moved, he came alone, after his brothers had moved and before his parents did. [1]

Education

Tariq says he skipped A-Levels because he did not think he would get the grades for a decent university. He describes Malaysia, Turkey, Cyprus, the UK and the US as all being options after O-Levels. He went to North Cyprus for university, and says he went there for his bachelor's degree. [1]

His bachelor's programme was in visual arts and communication design. He first enrolled in computer engineering and switched from engineering to design after one semester. Tariq says design was the first subject in which he felt he was a good student. He describes the teaching as a practical approach in which students can start before they are fully professional. He says he took extra courses every semester and graduated in about three and a half years. [1]

Career

After university, Tariq applied for agency jobs in Pakistan. His first job in Pakistan was at an organisation. He says he worked at one place for two months and left, then worked at another place for two months and left. [1]

Tariq says he was working with big brands. An agency fired him after he had spent six months there. After being fired, he stopped applying for jobs. He says he was freelancing along the way at that time, and that he would make personal projects such as a short film or a series of artworks. [1]

Tariq says he had a Fiverr account for three years with no orders. After he revamped it, he received an order in the first month. [1]

Ajeeb Studio

Tariq's studio is called Ajeeb Studio. He says it helps very small businesses, and that it offers clients with small budgets 110% creative control. Tariq says he does not only design logos and works on full brands. He also says he runs an agency that takes client projects. [1]

Ajeeb Collective

Tariq says every collection has a story. He says one of his collections was made entirely during COVID. [1]

Teaching and Radical X

Tariq says he has been teaching for two years, since COVID. He launched an Instagram course when COVID began. [1]

Views

On careers in design, Tariq says skills and a portfolio matter more than a degree in design. He says mentorship was absent when he was choosing a career, and that school counsellors are often disconnected from the world. He also says thoughtful designers who know the philosophy behind their work are rare in Pakistan, and that a good eye comes with privilege. [1]

On freelancing, Tariq says some client work is not good enough to show on his Instagram. He says international clients offer more benefit than local ones, and that people should not work in the local market if they can avoid it. He says Pakistan needs dollars. Tariq says Pakistan has a large freelance market, which he calls the third largest in the world, and that he does the work he wants to do with international clients too. [1]

Tariq says Canva and Fiverr could automate design work within three to five years. He also says that in the longer run the human element will only get more expensive. [1]

On learning, Tariq says people need to unlearn things to grow and that people learn best in groups and communities. He says teaching should make students believe they can do the work. He says lack of self-belief is a major problem for learners, and that free information exists online but nobody curates it for learners. [1]

Tariq says Pakistani designers copy trends because they do not bring their own originality. He says Lahore is the right mix and has the right philosophy. He says Pakistan could improve if people talk and share more and are more sensitive to what is happening around them. Tariq says he made it so that people can connect with him and with his story, and that he wants to make things that are neither good nor bad, just weird. [1]

Appearances

DateTitleWhere
2022-05-30 The designer who deleted Pinterest to find originality Thought Behind Things

Frequently asked questions

Who is Areeb Tariq?

Areeb Tariq is a designer who runs Ajeeb Studio, a studio that helps very small businesses. He was born in Dubai and studied visual arts and communication design in North Cyprus.[1]

What does Areeb Tariq do?

Areeb Tariq designs full brands and not only logos. He runs a studio that helps very small businesses and an agency that takes client projects. He has also been teaching since the start of COVID.[1]

Where is Areeb Tariq from?

Areeb Tariq was born in Dubai and then lived in Saudi Arabia for 16 years. He later moved to Pakistan, coming alone after his brothers had moved and before his parents did.[1]

What is Ajeeb Studio?

Ajeeb Studio is the studio of Areeb Tariq. It helps very small businesses and offers clients with small budgets 110% creative control.[1]

What is Radical X?

Radical X is a learning platform that pairs skills with mentorship and apprenticeship. Areeb Tariq says it has students from across Pakistan and from places including the US and Canada. Its guided projects use real projects from his agency.[1]

What is Ajeeb Collective?

Areeb Tariq describes Ajeeb Collective as an art fashion collective. He says it began as his final-year university project.[1]

What does Ajeeb mean?

Areeb Tariq says the name Ajeeb means weird in Urdu and Arabic. He says he wants to make things that are neither good nor bad, just weird.[1]

References

  1. The designer who deleted Pinterest to find originality . Thought Behind Things , 2022-05-30.
Show the source passages (77 statements)
  1. Areeb says he was born in Dubai and then lived in Saudi Arabia for the next 16 years. I was born in Dubai and then I stayed for the next 16 years in Saudi Arabia.
  2. Areeb attended a Pakistani O-Level school. I went to like a Pakistani O-Level school.
  3. Areeb says he was not good at formal studies at school. But the whole idea was ki I wasn't really good at studies, like the way that was done, right?
  4. Areeb says he was good at debates, sports and football. Like debates, sports, like football and everything else, I was really good at it
  5. Areeb says his father has worked in finance all his life, at a trading company. Yeah, because my father was working. Yeah, so my father has been into finance all of his life. Right. Yeah, so it was like a trading company, wahan pe abu finance mein hote the.
  6. Areeb moved to Pakistan alone, after his brothers had moved and before his parents did. It was just me. I came, mere bhai ho gaye the, ammi abu nahi hue the.
  7. Areeb visited Pakistan during summers before he moved there. I've been in summers mein aate the
  8. Areeb went to North Cyprus for university. I was lucky enough and privileged enough to go to North Cyprus.
  9. Areeb says he went for his bachelor's degree in Cyprus. Toh wahan pe phir I went for my bachelor's.
  10. Areeb says he skipped A-Levels because he did not think he would get the grades for a decent university. A-Levels toh main nahi kar sakta. Agar karunga toh I won't get the grades that would get me to a decent university.
  11. Areeb says Malaysia, Turkey, Cyprus, the UK and the US are all options after O-Levels. straight off the bat, Malaysia is an option, Turkey is an option, Cyprus is an option, UK is an option, even US is an option.
  12. Areeb's bachelor's programme was in visual arts and communication design. Haan, visual arts and communication design ka tha.
  13. Areeb first enrolled in computer engineering. I went initially into computer engineering
  14. Areeb switched from engineering to design after one semester. yaar main pehla semester gaya, maine dekha, experience kiya aur maine switch kar liya.
  15. Areeb says design was taught in a practical way, so students can start before they are fully professional. Bahut hi practical approach thi aur woh practical approach, you don't have to become the most professional designer to start designing.
  16. Areeb says he graduated in about three and a half years. I graduated in 3.5 because took extra courses?
  17. Areeb says he took extra courses each semester to finish early. I just took extra courses every semester.
  18. Areeb says design was the first subject in which he felt he was a good student. the first time in my life I was like, oh, I'm actually a good student.
  19. Areeb says skills and a portfolio matter more than a degree in design. it's the skills that you have, it's the portfolio that you've done.
  20. Areeb says mentorship was absent when he was choosing a career. everyone has these ideas because mentorship nahi exist karti thi.
  21. Areeb says school counsellors are often disconnected from the world. agar exist bhi karte hain na counselors, they're so disconnected themselves from the world.
  22. After university, Areeb applied for agency jobs in Pakistan. Phir I started working, started it, applying for places, jo agency ki aati thi, apply karta tha, karta tha, karta tha.
  23. Areeb's first job in Pakistan was at an organisation he names in the interview. pehli jagah jo maine kaam kiya, it was called T2F.
  24. Areeb says he worked at one place for two months and left, then at another place for two months and left. Ek jagah kaam kiya 2 mahine, chhod diya. Dusri jagah kaam kiya 2 mahine, chhod diya.
  25. Areeb says he was working with big brands. and I was working with big brands
  26. An agency fired Areeb after he had spent six months there. they fired me, theek hai, woh maine 6 mahine guzare the ek agency mein.
  27. After being fired, Areeb stopped applying for jobs. ab I'm not applying for jobs.
  28. Areeb says he was freelancing along the way at that time. Us time pe yeh tha ki I was freelancing along the way, theek hai.
  29. Areeb says he would make personal projects such as a short film or a series of artworks. let's make a random short film, let's make like a random series of artworks
  30. Areeb says some client work is not good enough to show on his Instagram. I can't put it on my Instagram.
  31. Areeb says international clients offer more benefit than local ones. International obviously zyada fayda hai yaar. Local aap 4 projects karo, international ek ya aadha karoge.
  32. Areeb says people should not work in the local market if they can avoid it. please don't work in the local market if you can
  33. Areeb says Pakistan needs dollars. mainly I mean mulk ko dollar ki zaroorat hai, to be very honest.
  34. Areeb's studio helps very small businesses. Like with my studio, theek hai, hum bahut chhote-chhote business ko help out karte hain.
  35. Areeb says his studio offers clients with small budgets 110% creative control. hum kehte hain hamare paas 110% creative control hai agar aapke paas paise nahi hain.
  36. Areeb says he does the work he wants to do with international clients too. Bahar bhi I do the work that I want to do, right?
  37. Areeb says Pakistan has a large freelance market, which he calls the third largest in the world. Pakistan mein huge freelance market hai, third largest in the world hai.
  38. Areeb says Canva and Fiverr could automate design work within three to five years. Woh Canva kare automate, woh Fiverr khud kar de automate, it's only like it's, it's, it's 3 to 5 years.
  39. Areeb says that in the longer run the human element will only get more expensive. In the longer run, the human element will only get more expensive.
  40. Areeb says thoughtful designers who know the philosophy behind their work are rare in Pakistan. From that to a thoughtful designer jisko falsafa pata ho uske peeche. Aur yeh bahut kam hai Pakistan mein.
  41. Areeb says he does not only design logos and works on full brands. I don't do logos only I do brands.
  42. Areeb says a good eye comes with privilege. Good eye comes with privilege.
  43. Areeb says he had a Fiverr account for three years with no orders before revamping it. how I even had an account on Fiverr for three years with zero orders and then once I revamped everything, you know, I had an order in the first month
  44. Areeb says people need to unlearn things to grow. For them to grow they need to open themselves up to new experiences and new formats and obviously unlearn a lot of stuff.
  45. Areeb says he runs an agency that takes client projects. jo meri agency mein project aa raha hai
  46. Radical X is a learning platform that pairs skills with mentorship and apprenticeship. Yaar so Radical X is basically a platform where people can learn, you know, and kind of have and acquire the skills and not only the skills but mentorship and apprenticeship at the same point.
  47. Radical X runs mock job interviews for its students. Hum mock interviews karte hain.
  48. Radical X has run a graphic design boot camp and a freelance masterclass. we've done a graphic design boot camp, we've done a freelance masterclass
  49. Radical X localizes a Google course with examples from apps such as Foodpanda. to Google bhi course padha raha hai but we are localizing it. We are telling the same example with oh how Foodpanda's UI work, how Bykea works
  50. Radical X's guided projects use real projects from Areeb's agency. hamari agency mein jo project aa raha hai hum wohi project bacchon ke saamne kar rahe hain, bacchon ke saath karwa rahe hain.
  51. Radical X's app is called radicalx.app and anyone can join. we have an app it's called radicalx.app. Anyone can join in.
  52. Radical X has about 300 community members and had not yet marketed it. We have like 300 people right now and we haven't even marketed yet.
  53. Areeb says people learn best in groups and communities. People learn best in groups. People learn best in communities, right?
  54. Radical X runs webinars and podcasts every week. We do like multiple like webinars and podcast every week
  55. Radical X boot camps had around 30 to 40 students. hamare boot camps mein we had like around 30 to 40 students.
  56. Areeb says a full course has eight to ten interactive classes. For the entire course. That's like 8 to 10 interactive classes.
  57. Areeb says he has been teaching for two years, since COVID. I've been teaching for the last two years since COVID hit.
  58. Areeb launched an Instagram course when COVID began. that's when I launched my Instagram course.
  59. Radical X added leaderboards to its classes to keep students engaged. Humne classes mein leaderboards daal diye, we want to engage people.
  60. Areeb says teaching should make students believe they can do the work. it's like me making you believe that you can do Photoshop even better than me
  61. Areeb says Radical X has students from across Pakistan and from places including the US and Canada. Abhi hamare paas bache poori duniya poore Pakistan se even baahar se hain US, Canada and all of these multiple places.
  62. Radical X teaches students how to give and receive critique. hum log bacchon ko sikha rahe hain critique kaise dena hai aur critique kaise lena hai.
  63. Areeb says lack of self-belief is a major problem for learners. Self-belief ka sabse bada masla hai ke yaar usko kyun lagta hai ke main nahi ban sakta
  64. Areeb says free information exists online but nobody curates it for learners. information to hai magar woh curate karke koi nahi de raha na.
  65. Areeb says a venture of his is called Ajeeb Collective. Yeah, so it's called Ajeeb Collective.
  66. Ajeeb Collective began as Areeb's final-year university project. And that was actually my final year project. It was my thesis.
  67. Areeb says the name Ajeeb means weird in Urdu and Arabic. Weird in Urdu and Arabic is Ajeeb.
  68. Areeb describes Ajeeb Collective as an art fashion collective. Basically it's like an art fashion collective, right?
  69. Areeb says he started experimenting with denim. So I started experimenting with denim.
  70. Areeb says he wants to make things that are neither good nor bad, just weird. So I want to make things that are not good, not bad, they're just weird.
  71. Areeb says every collection has a story. every collection would have a story. The first one was called More More.
  72. Areeb says one of his collections was made entirely during COVID. So the whole collection was made in COVID
  73. Areeb says he made it so that people can connect with him and with his story. I made it so they can connect with me, they can connect with my story
  74. Areeb says Pakistani designers copy trends because they do not bring their own originality. kyunke hum log originality jab apni nahi layenge, humse toh koi nahi chap raha.
  75. Areeb says Lahore is the right mix and has the right philosophy. Um Lahore is the right mix. I always say that ke Lahore has the right falsafa
  76. Areeb says Pakistan could improve if people talk and share more and are more sensitive to what is happening around them. if people start talking to each other more, sharing each other more and being like more sensitive to what's going around
  77. Areeb's studio is called Ajeeb Studio. Ajeeb Studio, why did he choose to call it