PINE Philly & Me
Hey everyone. My name is Chase Ulle and I am a final year advertising student in the art direction concentration. For as long as I can remember, I have always been drawn to anything with “good design”. So naturally, the more I grew into myself, I fell deeper into the rabbit hole of the design world. I never really had a very clear idea of what I wanted to do, I just knew that I wanted to be around design. From a beautiful art nouveau doorframe, to a well-designed typeface, or even just a simple coffee table, I often find myself deeply captivated.
My fascination with design eventually led me to choosing my Advertising major with a concentration in art direction. I can’t say that I was ever too attracted to the advertising industry, but I loved the concept of branding and wanted to learn everything I could about it for my own ventures. Fast forward through my main years of college and personal/artistic development, I decided to begin looking for internships. But, of course, the usual job hunt struggle began to prevail… Until one morning I woke up and looked at my emails. I saw that there was an internship opening for a small advertising agency in South Philly called PINE Philly. Immediately I really enjoyed the way they branded their agency to match the concept of “Pine” and “Growth”, so I applied. The next day or so I was emailed back with a request to interview over zoom. This is where I met 2 of the 3 founders, Steve and Buzz, and immediately felt comfortable. I never had any previous professional design experience so I was a bit anxious at the thought of uncertainty. But, the tight-knight, organized but relaxed energy at PINE sorted that out right way.
To this day, I have been essentially working remote under Buzz, with the assistance of Steve and the third co-founder, Kate. Buzz is the lead designer for the team and determines my responsibilities in accordance to what he needs help with. I have mostly been sourcing images for monthly blogs and designing small collateral as needed, as well as helping with concept brainstorming. I am currently working on a bigger project with the strategy intern for Pennsylvania Recreation & Park Services. I am designing roadtrip maps to be used alongside other material promoting PA parks travel. This has been my favorite project so far, as I am really able to test my skills as a designer and illustrator, as well as learn and grow as an intern.
Overall, I have been very grateful for the opportunity I’ve been given at PINE and am trying to make the most of it. I have learned some truly invaluable information that I will carry with me outside of this singular experience, such as teamwork, professional communication, and how real ad campaigns are rolled out. Specifically, I have also gained more insight into print advertising, as that is what PINE specializes in. I also learn a lot from our daily status update zoom calls, especially taking note on the flow of presentations and how to stay on track during a short call. I hope to maintain a lasting relationship with Buzz, Steve, and Kate, and am excited to see where I end up after.
