I’M LENA, A SEASONED DESIGNER ORIGINALLY FROM RUSSIA, MSC. I’VE SPENT THE PAST 18 YEARS BUILDING DIGITAL PRODUCTS, LEADING DESIGN TEAMS, AND EXPLORING HOW CULTURE AND TECHNOLOGY SHAPE EACH OTHER.
From 2008 to 2014, I climbed the career ladder from junior design roles to creative direction. In 2014, I became Creative Director at Otkritie FC Bank, leading digital communications for its brokerage division. It was everything I thought I wanted, until I realized it wasn’t.
I left the corporate world and founded The Chayka Shop, a small experimental craft studio that unexpectedly appeared in online media such as SNC, Afisha, Elle, and The Village. For a year, I stepped away from digital design entirely and worked with my hands, exploring form, scent, and material — a completely different kind of design.
In 2015, I returned to digital while continuing to run The Chayka Shop. I worked on client projects at ONY and joined Innova, a game publisher and distributor, as Art Director, shaping game launches, promotional websites, event concepts, and digital products. Later, I led web design at WayRay, translating complex AR and automotive technology into clear digital experiences.
In 2023, I joined the music streaming service Zvuk, first leading its design team and later moving into R&D. There, I explored future product directions and the intersections between user experience, technology, and culture.
This experience eventually led me to form EESSOO D.P. Today, I work as a principal-level designer for established product companies. While their teams are focused on serving the backlog, I imagine what the product could become two years from now, developing north-star concepts that give teams a clear direction to navigate towards.
Over the years, I have worked with companies and organizations including Yandex, Huawei, Kaspersky, Raiffeisen Bank, Camber, Autry Park, and Kulturhuset Stadsteatern and others.
Alongside commercial work, I initiate cultural and research-driven projects of my own. Kira Muratova’s Vers Libre, a web essay that I wrote, designed, and built independently, won the Webby People’s Voice Award in NetArt in 2026.
I also curate WNDWS, a participatory study of identity, place, and human connection, told through views from people’s windows and the stories behind them.
RECOGNITIONS
Webby Awards
People’s Voice Winner (NetArt)
2026
CSSDA
UI/UX/Innovation
2026
Awwwards
SOTD, AH, HM x5
2020-2026
Behance
2014-2026
x40
Hiiibrand Awards
Finalist
2023
ODA Awards
Winner and Gold
2023
AKAR
Creativity Rating (Digital)
2020, 2022
APD Awards
Selected for Editorial Board of Almanac
2019 & 2021
CSS Awards
Showcase Featured x2
2020
Readymag
Project of the Year
2020
Mindsparkle Mag
Site of the Day
2020
G8
Long List
2019
CSS Winners
Site of the Day
2019
Investfunds Awards
Best Broker App
2019
CSS Lite
SOTD x2
2017
FinNext
Winner
2016
Behance Russian Top 5
Branding
2015
PUBLICATIONS
Readymag Blog
Rethinking what’s possible with Readymag
2026
It’s Nice That!
See & Grow
2025
Handheld Design
User Playlists
2024
Mindsparkle Mag
Swell
2024
UX Parrot
Featured designers
2023
Mindsparkle Mag
MadBand
2022
Abduzeebo
Vostok
2022
Interface Market
Camber
2022
Type.today
Personal website
2020
Tutdesign
The Chayka Shop
2016
BOOKS
Ну почему мы этого не знали до того, как начали работатьЭйч, Moscow
Hot Right Now — A Contemporary Landscape for Digital Thinkers: Vol.4
Awwwards Book
Asia-Pacific Design Yearbook No.15,17-18
Sandu Publishing Co., Ltd. of Guangzhou
Interactive Design for Screen
Sandu Publishing Co., Ltd. of Guangzhou
Excellent Branding Identity 2
Hightone Publishing Ltd. of Guangzhou
Touching Branding 3
Artpower International Publish Co., Ltd. of Hong Kong
INTERVIEW
Podcast Dobar Dabar
Youtube
2025
Диалог о дизайне: почему они вмешиваются
BBE
2024
РД #37 · Референсы дизайна
Дизайн-коммьюнити
2023
Об экзистенциальной зрелости и опасности тотального упрoщения
Skvot
2020
Как преуспеть вне офиса
Skvot
2020
An Opportunity to Create Something Beautiful
Viola Chip
2020
Работа над продуктом - не самовыражение
Innova
2017
Познакомьтесь с самым красивым мылом на свете
Afisha Daily
2017
JURY
Lovie Awards Judge / IADAS Academy Member
2026
Awwwards Jury
2020-now
G8 Greateight Jury
2022, 2024
ODA Awards
2023
British Higher School
2021
CSS Design Awards
2017-2021
G8 Executive Jury
2019
Behance Russia Top Five
2016