ELLIOT SALAZAR ☺︎





Designer, Illustrator & Art Director
A quiet yet witty, perfectionist originally from West Texas. He now lives and works in New York City where he is helping shape design, branding, and creative strategy at TikTok. He also doesn’t drink coffee or eat avocados – weird, right?.

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+ elliot.e.salazar{at]gmail.com +
CV ↘︎





Education
 School of Visual Arts
MFA – Designer as Author and Entrepreneur Program
New York, New York

Texas Tech University
BFA – Communication Design 
Lubbock, Texas



Experience 

TikTok
Senior Creative Lead
↘︎ 2023 – Present

Currently focused on design, creative strategy and art direction for marketing projects, events, social content and in-app e-commerce campaigns for the launch of TikTok Shop in the US.

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Instagram
Brand Designer [2021-2022]

On the Brand Design team, I helped shape a variety of brand touch-points across product, editorial, and experiential. I was the lead designer for @design, including the #BlackDesignVisionaires grant program and art directed Instagram cultural moment stickers.

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Virtue Worldwide
Senior Designer [2019-2021]

Virtue is the creative agency born from VICE, and I worked on some exciting projects with clients like Urban Decay, Beats by Dre and Cholula Hot Sauce, new business pitches, and internal projects for the agency. 

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Refinery29
Senior Designer 
Social Media [2014-2018]

Sitting on both the Design and Social Media teams, I oversaw editorial and branded content for all social media channels. If you’ve liked, double tapped, or retweeted an @R29 social post then you’ve probably seen some of my work!

• Designer [2015-2017]
• Freelance Designer [2014-2015]
• Editorial Design Intern
  [2014-2015]

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Warby Parker
Graphic Design Intern [2013-2014]

As a bespectacled intern by day and graduate student by night (I was pretty busy then)I worked on design assets for collectionsand other special collabs.

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Texas Tech University
Graphic Designer [2011-2012]

Worked with faculty, staff, and students in developing new projects for the School of Art and Landmark Arts Galleries – brochures, exhibitions designs, and recruitment materials.

• La Ventana Managing Editor
  [2008-2011]
• Rec Sports Marketing Designer
  [2009-2010]



Organizations

AIGA NY Board of Directors 
Communications and Social Media
[2017-2020]



Awards & Honors
Society of Illustrators 66th Annual: Advertising & Institutional Jury [2023]

AICP Next Awards Judge, 
Category: Influencer [2023]

#ArtOnLink World Pride Featured Artist [2019]

Chandelier Creative – Mermaid Ranch Artist In Residence [2018]

The Young Ones: Advertising & Design Student Competition Juror [2017]

Print Magazine Regional Design Award [2017]

Ace Hotel: New York Artist in Residency Program (#AceAIR)

AIGA Command X Competition [2016]



Speaking Engagements
SVA MFA Design Guest Lecturer
New York, NY

Laguna College of Art + Design
Guest Lecturer 
Laguna Beach, CA

Shillington School Of Design 
Guest Lecturer 
New York, NY



Press AIGA Eye on Design
Planoly
Newspaper Club
Brand Therapy Podcast








Last Updated 25.02.13
SELECTED WORK [WIP]




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Just some fun stuff.

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2015 AIGA Design Conference: New Orleans
Command X Competition

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+ Featured: Eye on Design
+ See more photos: AIGA Flickr AIGA’s live design competition brings seven up-and-coming designers head-to-head to face off for the chance to break into the industry in front of an audience of thousands.

The 2015 Command X 5 in New Orleans lineup: Sarah Azpeitia, a UX designer at Refinery29; Clare Jensen, art director at 72andSunny; Jacob Parr, graphic designer at North Graphic Design; Nate Pyper, in-house designer at the Milwaukee Art Museum; Elliot Salazar, graphic designer and illustrator at Refinery29; Amy Nicole Schwartz, lead designer at Cards Against Humanity and a founder of Chicago’s Liminal Space; and Russell Shaw, multidisciplinary designer and illustrator.

Creator and Producer: Bonnie Siegler of Eight and a Half
Sponsored by: LG UltraWide Monitor


Ace Hotel New York
Artist In Residency
Untitled Room 11

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During the month of October 2018 the #AceAIR (Artist In Residency) program was curated by the design team at Refinery29. Along with fellow designer, Isabel Castillo Guijarro, we created “an experience, not just art.” The space was filled first with more than a few (thousand) yellow balloons and later our closest friends. We called the resulting interactive piece Untitled Room 11.

Creative Direction: Isabel Castillo Guijarro, Elliot salazar

R29Design Valentine’s Day Cards

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Two days before Valentine’s Day, R29Design decided to create Valentine Cards for the entire company at Refinery29. Each member of the R29Design team contributed designs. Every card was sold for $1 and all proceeds from the sale were donated to Planned Parenthood.

Creative Direction: Isabel Castillo Guijarro, Elliot salazar
Design and illustrations: Alex Citrin, Anna Sudit, Ivy Liu, Louisa Cannel, Mallory Heyer, Abbie Wintters, Elliot Salazar, Paola Delucca, Hejab Malik, Bella Di Marzio, Alex Marino, Tristan Offit, Seeta Khanai and Michelle Cortez.
Photography: Rachel Cabbit

© Elliot Salazar 2024-2025