About me

I'm Sergei Chyrkov, Founder & Creative Director at CHYRKOV studio since 2012. I specialize in UX/UI, visual identity and web development. However, long before that I began my professional career as a photographer. Now it's more of a hobby, but I'm always open to interesting projects😉.

Also I've passionate about sharing my knowledge and experience. I've been teaching web design and Figma since 2018 and helped more than 2500 students find themselves in the design world!🌍

Education

2000-2004 — Studied art and photography in LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts in New York City.

2004-2009 — studied in Odessa National University in the Department “International Relations”.

2009-2012 — post-graduate study in Odessa National University in the Department “International Relations”.

2015-2017 — Masters of “Visual Communication Design”, Higher School of Economics, Art and Design School, Moscow.

Work and Life Events

I began my career when I studied photography in LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts in New York City (2000-2004).

In 2003, I received a Gold Key award for photography in New York State and the silver medal at the national level, in the U.S. national competition Scholastic Arts and Writing Awards.

From 2006 until 2008, I began to engage in commercial photography, when collaborated with many magazines in Odessa, such as “Favorite Udachi,” the newspaper “Komsomolskaya Pravda” and “Telenedelya.”

From 2008 up to 2010 worked as a staff photographer and photo-editor of the magazine “Passage.” Since the fall of 2009 until fall 2011 I worked as a staff photographer in «SHOPcity» magazine.

Since 2007 I became an official member of the Photographic Club of Odessa “FOTON 2”, and regularly took part in photo exhibitions, and various projects.

Since 2009, I’ve been caring out work-shops at photography school “Phototraveller” for young photographers.

Since 2012 I became an official member of Odessa Photographic Association.

In January 2012 I’ve been awarded “Photographer of 2011” according to Odessa Entertainment Awards.

In June 2012 I’ve opened my own photo and design production studio “KONTORA Production“. Began to do web-design.

Since 2016 my work is published in international magazines in USA and UK.

In January 2017 I won a Grand Prix at the contest “Best Photography of 2016” for a “Swan series”, Odessa, Ukraine.

Summer 2017 — my studio had a total rebranding and now it’s called “CHYRKOV studio“.

In November 2017 I began to work as a Creative Director in Intourist Thomas Cook.

November 2018 — CHYRKOV is registered as an official trade mark in Ukraine.

December 2018 – July 2022 — taught web-design and Figma at GeekBrains.

January 16, 2021 — launched Figma educational channel on YouTube.

March 2022 — moved to live and work in Antalya, Turkey.

March 15 2023 — launched educational channel on YouTube in English

June 7, 2023 — began to mentor designers at ADPlist.org

The most favorite genres are: fashion, advertising and portraits.

What my students have to say

Sergei is an exceptional individual! Love his energy. I enjoyed his narrative-driven approach. He has genuine passion for his craft. Very approachable & the session was marked by mutual knowledge and experience sharing. We delved into the challenges of todays market. It was a dynamic exchange of questions and insights; that could only be described & compared as invigorating sparring match where both of us left with valuable takeaways.

Jonas Bröms

Senior Product Designer, Odduse

Feb 23, 2024

I'm grateful to have met him. Our session was highly productive as he addressed all my questions about interviews and provided valuable perspectives. Sergei's kindness and effortless communication made the experience even more valuable.

Elif Saraç

Product Designer, Toptal

Feb 19, 2024

Sergei gave me the opportunity to look at my portfolio from a new perspective. It was an enlightening experience and professional advice that will help me build my next career path. Thank you for the detailed analysis and new sources of inspiration.

Krystyna Mosiichuk

Graphic designer at Freelance

Jan 18, 2024

Sergei is a very pleasant person, with a clear and structured communication. In our consultation, he shared his wealth of experience, providing insightful answers to every question I asked. I am deeply appreciative of the valuable advice he offered during our session.

Angelina Sachivko

UI/UX designer, Freelance

Jan 16, 2024

I had a question about no-code and low-code development. Our consultation turned into a true career consultation. Serhii also discussed new technologies that I should learn and use in practice. I highly recommend Serhii as a qualified specialist.

Ivan Hryshko

Oct 15, 2023

I'm really thankful for the session! It was a truly transformative experience. His wealth of knowledge, his passion for mentoring, and his genuine interest in my growth as a creative professional were evident throughout our time together. I left the session feeling inspired, motivated, and armed with a clear direction for my creative career. I would highly recommend Sergei as a mentor to anyone looking to excel in the creative industry

Yaroslav Kysil

UI/UX Designer, D4 Group

Nov 7, 2023

Thanks a lot to Sergei🙌, got portfolio feedback and development direction. Great communicator, the conversation flowed as if we had known each other for a long time. I got answers to my questions and I am encouraged and motivated to be productive and grow.

Yaroslav Tarakhkalo

Junior UXUI at Rezolution

Sep 14, 2023

I asked Sergei for feedback on my portfolio and received a lot of truly valuable professional advice. Thank you so much! This session was indeed eye-opening. 👍🏻

Natalia Vyslanko

UI/UX designer, Netrix

Jun 24, 2023

I wanted to thank you for teaching me Figma. Your expertise and patience have been invaluable in helping me learn this powerful design tool. Thanks to your guidance, I now feel confident using Figma to create beautiful designs. I appreciate all that you have done for me, and I am grateful for the time I spent learning from you.

Sanzhan Zhaksylyk

UI/UX designer

Mar 17, 2023

Thank you for the opportunity to learn from such a wonderful teacher. In a short time, I learned a lot of useful information and improved my skills. Sergey was always in touch, inspired me, supported, helped to cope with difficulties. It was great to watch the process of work of other students: everyone's work turned out to be very different and interesting.

Viktoryia Babko

UI/UX designer

Apr 2, 2023

Excellent teacher! Attentive to the smallest detail and very responsive. He always answers all the questions in detail and conducts an excellent analysis of the work in the course of education.

Artem Loshak

UI/UX designer, Freelance

Mar 6, 2023

What my students have to say

Sergei is an exceptional individual! Love his energy. I enjoyed his narrative-driven approach. He has genuine passion for his craft. Very approachable & the session was marked by mutual knowledge and experience sharing. We delved into the challenges of todays market. It was a dynamic exchange of questions and insights; that could only be described & compared as invigorating sparring match where both of us left with valuable takeaways.

Jonas Bröms

Senior Product Designer, Odduse

Feb 23, 2024

I'm grateful to have met him. Our session was highly productive as he addressed all my questions about interviews and provided valuable perspectives. Sergei's kindness and effortless communication made the experience even more valuable.

Elif Saraç

Product Designer, Toptal

Feb 19, 2024

Sergei gave me the opportunity to look at my portfolio from a new perspective. It was an enlightening experience and professional advice that will help me build my next career path. Thank you for the detailed analysis and new sources of inspiration.

Krystyna Mosiichuk

Graphic designer at Freelance

Jan 18, 2024

Sergei is a very pleasant person, with a clear and structured communication. In our consultation, he shared his wealth of experience, providing insightful answers to every question I asked. I am deeply appreciative of the valuable advice he offered during our session.

Angelina Sachivko

UI/UX designer, Freelance

Jan 16, 2024

I had a question about no-code and low-code development. Our consultation turned into a true career consultation. Serhii also discussed new technologies that I should learn and use in practice. I highly recommend Serhii as a qualified specialist.

Ivan Hryshko

Oct 15, 2023

I'm really thankful for the session! It was a truly transformative experience. His wealth of knowledge, his passion for mentoring, and his genuine interest in my growth as a creative professional were evident throughout our time together. I left the session feeling inspired, motivated, and armed with a clear direction for my creative career. I would highly recommend Sergei as a mentor to anyone looking to excel in the creative industry

Yaroslav Kysil

UI/UX Designer, D4 Group

Nov 7, 2023

Thanks a lot to Sergei🙌, got portfolio feedback and development direction. Great communicator, the conversation flowed as if we had known each other for a long time. I got answers to my questions and I am encouraged and motivated to be productive and grow.

Yaroslav Tarakhkalo

Junior UXUI at Rezolution

Sep 14, 2023

I asked Sergei for feedback on my portfolio and received a lot of truly valuable professional advice. Thank you so much! This session was indeed eye-opening. 👍🏻

Natalia Vyslanko

UI/UX designer, Netrix

Jun 24, 2023

I wanted to thank you for teaching me Figma. Your expertise and patience have been invaluable in helping me learn this powerful design tool. Thanks to your guidance, I now feel confident using Figma to create beautiful designs. I appreciate all that you have done for me, and I am grateful for the time I spent learning from you.

Sanzhan Zhaksylyk

UI/UX designer

Mar 17, 2023

Thank you for the opportunity to learn from such a wonderful teacher. In a short time, I learned a lot of useful information and improved my skills. Sergey was always in touch, inspired me, supported, helped to cope with difficulties. It was great to watch the process of work of other students: everyone's work turned out to be very different and interesting.

Viktoryia Babko

UI/UX designer

Apr 2, 2023

Excellent teacher! Attentive to the smallest detail and very responsive. He always answers all the questions in detail and conducts an excellent analysis of the work in the course of education.

Artem Loshak

UI/UX designer, Freelance

Mar 6, 2023

What my students have to say

Sergei is an exceptional individual! Love his energy. I enjoyed his narrative-driven approach. He has genuine passion for his craft. Very approachable & the session was marked by mutual knowledge and experience sharing. We delved into the challenges of todays market. It was a dynamic exchange of questions and insights; that could only be described & compared as invigorating sparring match where both of us left with valuable takeaways.

Jonas Bröms

Senior Product Designer, Odduse

Feb 23, 2024

I'm grateful to have met him. Our session was highly productive as he addressed all my questions about interviews and provided valuable perspectives. Sergei's kindness and effortless communication made the experience even more valuable.

Elif Saraç

Product Designer, Toptal

Feb 19, 2024

Sergei gave me the opportunity to look at my portfolio from a new perspective. It was an enlightening experience and professional advice that will help me build my next career path. Thank you for the detailed analysis and new sources of inspiration.

Krystyna Mosiichuk

Graphic designer at Freelance

Jan 18, 2024

Sergei is a very pleasant person, with a clear and structured communication. In our consultation, he shared his wealth of experience, providing insightful answers to every question I asked. I am deeply appreciative of the valuable advice he offered during our session.

Angelina Sachivko

UI/UX designer, Freelance

Jan 16, 2024

I had a question about no-code and low-code development. Our consultation turned into a true career consultation. Serhii also discussed new technologies that I should learn and use in practice. I highly recommend Serhii as a qualified specialist.

Ivan Hryshko

Oct 15, 2023

I'm really thankful for the session! It was a truly transformative experience. His wealth of knowledge, his passion for mentoring, and his genuine interest in my growth as a creative professional were evident throughout our time together. I left the session feeling inspired, motivated, and armed with a clear direction for my creative career. I would highly recommend Sergei as a mentor to anyone looking to excel in the creative industry

Yaroslav Kysil

UI/UX Designer, D4 Group

Nov 7, 2023

Thanks a lot to Sergei🙌, got portfolio feedback and development direction. Great communicator, the conversation flowed as if we had known each other for a long time. I got answers to my questions and I am encouraged and motivated to be productive and grow.

Yaroslav Tarakhkalo

Junior UXUI at Rezolution

Sep 14, 2023

I asked Sergei for feedback on my portfolio and received a lot of truly valuable professional advice. Thank you so much! This session was indeed eye-opening. 👍🏻

Natalia Vyslanko

UI/UX designer, Netrix

Jun 24, 2023

I wanted to thank you for teaching me Figma. Your expertise and patience have been invaluable in helping me learn this powerful design tool. Thanks to your guidance, I now feel confident using Figma to create beautiful designs. I appreciate all that you have done for me, and I am grateful for the time I spent learning from you.

Sanzhan Zhaksylyk

UI/UX designer

Mar 17, 2023

Thank you for the opportunity to learn from such a wonderful teacher. In a short time, I learned a lot of useful information and improved my skills. Sergey was always in touch, inspired me, supported, helped to cope with difficulties. It was great to watch the process of work of other students: everyone's work turned out to be very different and interesting.

Viktoryia Babko

UI/UX designer

Apr 2, 2023

Excellent teacher! Attentive to the smallest detail and very responsive. He always answers all the questions in detail and conducts an excellent analysis of the work in the course of education.

Artem Loshak

UI/UX designer, Freelance

Mar 6, 2023

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No spam, just updates and sweets. Unsubscribe anytime.

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No spam, just updates and sweets. Unsubscribe anytime.