{"id":20899,"date":"2025-04-09T15:06:40","date_gmt":"2025-04-09T15:06:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nft.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/09\/meet-ilya-head-of-design-at-rarible-2\/"},"modified":"2025-04-09T15:06:40","modified_gmt":"2025-04-09T15:06:40","slug":"meet-ilya-head-of-design-at-rarible-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nft.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/09\/meet-ilya-head-of-design-at-rarible-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Meet Ilya: Head of Design at Rarible"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Ilya Komolkin is Head of Design here at Rarible. He has been at the core of Rarible\u2019s brand and vision since day 1. Incredibly passionate about visual culture, he is also a whizz at front-end development, product design, and user experience. From freelance design work, to big tech, to web3 startup: Ilya\u2019s seen it all and brings his experience to bear crafting Rarible\u2019s product vision.<\/p>\n

Developing a passion for visual culture<\/h2>\n

From a very young age, Ilya Komolkin<\/u><\/a> found himself drawn to the arts. In school, he was constantly drawing in class, covering his textbooks in doodles, probably paying more attention to his own creative explorations than anything his teachers were saying. When he discovered digital design tools, he unlocked a whole new world.<\/p>\n

\u201cI knew early on that my future would be connected to something visual. When I had my first computer class, I saw Photoshop 1.0 and Macromedia Flash and it blew my mind! I remember a teacher asking what I wanted to be when I grew up. I said “designer”\u2014even though I didn\u2019t fully understand what that meant. I just knew I wanted to work with technology and visual creativity.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Over the years, he became involved in different cultural scenes, broadening his horizons and discovering new passions. He found himself falling down the rabbit hole of cultural phenomena: breakdancing, electronic music, street art, big brands, and of course \u2014 skateboarding.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cFor a while, I dreamed of becoming a professional skateboarder. The skateboarding scene helped shape my visual tastes, and I learned a lot about branding, messaging, and how to build community. From a skills perspective, it was the best time\u2014learning through passion made everything click.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Ilya’s growing collection of skateboards.<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Going pro<\/h2>\n

During University, Ilya worked at different design agencies and studios, developing his style and gaining experience in branding. Eventually he and friends created Common App: a fun content app for travellers to share their tips and recommendations in a blog post format with map view and pins with convenient routes. Unfortunately Google launched a similar project before Common App was able to fully find its groove, but this experience was invaluable for Ilya, and taught him a lot about every element of the startup process:<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was one of my best experiences\u2014I learned how a product team works. I gained knowledge about project management, product management, design, marketing, and even fundraising. We built traction, reaching 30,000 users. It wasn\u2019t huge, but it was an international product.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

After Common App, Ilya spent seven years working in big tech, in both development and design. The corporate culture appealed to him, and the resources were mind-boggling \u2013 for example, a dedicated UX lab with a team of 20 researching user behavior round the clock! Eventually, Ilya grew tired of the slow pace of big tech, and Crypto came into his life, offering innovation at break-neck speed.<\/p>\n