2022 Senior Exhibition Artists

Helene Ratanak

Art + Design: Graphic Design | Computer Science Minor

About Helene Ratanak

Helene Ratanak is a graphic designer and developer who grew up in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. After exploring her passion for creativity, she wanted to pursue her career in graphic design/front-end development. She earned her associate's in fines art at Community College of Rhode Island and transferred to Umass Dartmouth to get her bachelor’s in graphic design minoring in computer science. She wishes to advance her skill in developing a website and mobile apps after she found her new passion in product design, UX – UI, and brand identity. 

Statement

To brand herself authentically and uniquely, Helene wanted to use this thesis project to present to the world her culture and where she came from. She has been researching cultural elements such as Khmer agriculture, and transportation.

Cyclo (see-clo) is a three-wheel taxi driver based in Cambodia. It was first introduced in 1936 and remains one of the best forms of transportation you see in the city landscape. However, Cyclo is becoming extinct since users choose machine vehicles for quicker travel. The pandemic has challenged the Cyclo industry and affected the drivers’ livelihoods to become the poorest of the urban poor in the capital.

To save cyclo from going extinction, Helene created a mobile app concept to show an awareness of using technology to operate a transportation system using Cyclo. The app purposely provides a transportation service to locals & tourists by tracking their nearby location at affordable prices. Drivers can receive customers in their neighborhood at their fingertips instead of riding further to find one. The Cyclo takes part in Cambodia’s rich history and heritage, it demonstrates as memory keepers of the movement Helene finds herself in through her past and present.