David Balan
Multidisciplinary designer Portfolio, 2026

I design how people understand complex things.

I'm a UX, UI, visual, and learning designer: teacher first, Harvard HCI after. Since then, art direction for oncology brands, training for Google Fiber's service teams, and the brand of the Pilates studio I helped my wife found. Three kinds of work, one habit: work out what people need to understand, then make it clear and make it look right.

See the work LinkedIn
David Balan smiling, in a black hoodie
  • Designer
  • Educator
  • Builder
  • Storyteller
  • Founder
  • Enablement
  • Collaborator
  • Dreamer

Problems I've solved

Each one opens with a 30-second version.

  1. Google Fiber, learning experience design Password

    Support reps had seconds to find the right policy, mid-call.

    Scenario-based training that scaled across regions. Client vendors reported over 40% more reps felt confident handling customer issues.

    Read the case study
  2. The Cornerstone Pilates home page: a row of reformers in the studio under the line Move with grace, build with strengthThe Cornerstone Pilates home page on a phone: the wordmark, the reformer photo with the line Move with grace, build with strength, and three green buttons

    Cornerstone Pilates, brand and website

    A new studio needed first-time visitors to book, not just browse.

    Identity and site, end to end. 150+ active clients, 56 classes a week.

    Read the case study

  3. Micromind, UX and UI concept at Harvard

    Microaggression training makes people defensive, so they stop learning.

    A story-based practice app. Refreshed in 2026 with AI-assisted prototyping.

    Read the case study

  4. Oncology brands, information and UI design Password

    Busy providers need clinical data they can trust at a glance.

    Provider sites and a design system, built inside strict medical review.

    Confidential client work, approved pieces only.

    Read the case study
Render: seven small bottle keychains in a row, cream to deep green, each with the Cornerstone Pilates mark, and a tiny reformer in front
In progress

Small rewards for showing up: 3D printed milestones for Cornerstone Pilates.

The studio I helped my wife found wants to mark clients' milestones with something they'll keep: a keychain, a desk piece, a plaque. Brainstorms done, concepts rendered, nothing printed yet. I'm writing it up as it happens, unfinished parts included.

Follow the work

How I work

Four habits that show up in every project on this site.

  1. Start with the people

    Before I sketch, I find out how people actually use the thing.

  2. Name the real problem

    It's often the format. Google Fiber's reps had the policies, just not in a shape they could use mid-call.

  3. Make it rough, then test it

    Early versions go in front of real people before anything gets polished.

  4. Keep listening after launch

    I revise when policies shift, feedback comes in, or the business grows.

More problems I've solved

The 30-second versions.

Haitian Americans United for Progress, 2017 to 2020

Teens shaping their own after-school program

Problem
A city-funded STEAM and social-emotional learning program needed more students to engage.
What I did
Ran youth-led design sessions so students helped shape the curriculum, then benchmarked it with 150+ participants.
What happened
Engagement rose 50%, and the program kept its A rating with NYC's Department of Youth and Community Development.

Omnicom (Remedy Edge, formerly DDB Health), 2025 to now

A design system a busy agency team actually uses

Problem
High-volume digital and print work across several oncology brands had to stay consistent without slowing anyone down.
What I did
As the team's Figma lead, built the design systems, component libraries, and templates, and set the workflow standards.
What happened
The three designers on the team work from it every day. Less rework, faster delivery.

Harvard Graduate School of Education, 2020 to 2021

Online spaces built for working together

Problem
When HGSE moved to remote and hybrid learning, students and faculty needed online spaces for real collaboration.
What I did
Co-designed virtual collaboration spaces, using usability research and iterative design.
What happened
Better remote learning, in spaces that were easier to scale across HGSE.
hannmade stationery logo Nescio logo: golden-ratio spirals woven into a square, with the name in gold capitals juicemadethis logo: a ball of yarn with a crochet hook, orange on sky blue Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at SHASS logo The Land of Milk and Honey Apothecary logo, gold script on maroon Top-Shelf Clothing badge logo with a light bulb and est. 2020 Basia Bowens logo Haani and Co. logo: a serif wordmark on an orange sun with a sweeping line Good Prod logo: a bunch of grapes between the two words Féràn Ara Rẹ lifestyle wellness logo, black serif with small rose leaves Leading Partnerships logo: an L and P monogram in blue gradients Shot by AJ logo with a camera aperture for the O Andrew Morgan logo: an A and M with furniture cut into the letters AVARÉ logo, est. 2020, New York

Freelance

Identities for small businesses and community groups

Problem
Clients like hannmade stationery, AVARÉ, juicemadethis, Nescio, Haani and Co., and a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion office at MIT needed a mark, or had one that had gone out of date.
What I did
Refreshed each identity, from the logo to the type and color.
Authentic Brotherhood, strength in numbers: black type on grain, hosted by Bridge Church NYC Trading Places, our sin for his righteousness: white serif type over dried flowers turning to fresh blooms Trading Places option: a garland that turns from dried flowers to fresh blooms on teal Authentic Sisterhood: tall rust serif type on cream Trading Places option: a bouquet in a grey circle on green, with the line Our sin for his righteousness repeated King in a Manger: a crown above a manger in cream on red, with gold line art A social post reading I don't have enough time, God can make the time though, on a pink to teal gradient

Church and community

Event design for Bridge Church NYC

Problem
The church's event graphics had gone out of date.
What I did
Refreshed the look, starting with events like Authentic Brotherhood, then sermon series and social posts.

Let's talk.