My Name is Maria Celina

Who I Am & What I Do

I am an Interior Designer currently living somewhere in the Asian continent. My day-time job consists of busying myself with the creative process of improving the functions and aesthetics of the general interior space. I am also fascinated with other disciplines of design, occasionally squeezing in pockets of time for freelancing in web and print design. Sleep is overrated.

I am a first generation ATCK. I have attended international schools, having privilege of being exposed to a myriad perspectives through the eyes of my friends and classmates. My lifestyle is also reflective of this cross-cultural upbringing: I have lived in three countries. I speak with an American accent, yet submit to the British spelling system. I sort out my instant messenger contacts by continent. I speak several languages at home, have a passive command in another, and can swear in almost five more. Almost all my friends are TCKs or have experienced an upbringing in “melting pot” environments. I have almost a nutty interest in cultures and an insatiable wanderlust. Most of all, my definition of home is deeper and much less tangible than dictations of a passport or the physical characteristics and man-made rankings of a nation, because I believe that home is where one is most understood. I have found that solace of home both in Indonesia and in Singapore, and continue to find the same in the former.

According to the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, my personality type is INFJ or “The Counselor”. This means I hold firmly to my personal beliefs, value my personal space, and find comfort in a creative and expressive setting. I have been mistaken to be an extrovert due to my ability to be outgoing in front of people, but I am very selective with friends, and even more selective with what I divulge about myself to other people. Because of this, nobody has a complete picture of who I am as a person, even the people with who I am closest. That’s okay, because neither do I.

In my spare time, I enjoy taking photos with my silver Panasonic Lumix DMC FZ18, listening to music, watching good movies, reading books, writing reviews about various aspects of popular culture, watching “House”, arranging things in the sequence of the rainbow, devising new colour schemes, immersing myself in various cultures, perusing through various design media, ingesting copious amounts of caffeine, exploring various food and beverages, and… okay, maybe I do sleep.

Design Philosophy

Create-ive living is honest living. Regardless of whether design is done as a hobby or as a means of financial sustenance, to me, the value of a design is ultimately judged by the details of its creative process. This honesty is unrelated to the disconnection designers impose on their projects, because the act of creation something is raw and unadulterated.

Education

I completed high school in Jakarta International School, had a brief stint in business school, and went on to graduate from Raffles‘ Faculty of Design in Singapore, where I studied Design, emphasis in Interior Design. For my final dissertation, I wrote and designed a proposal for a vertical farm in the Singaporean context, allowing me to explore my special interest in sustainable design, architecture, and agriculture. I loved the entire academic experience.

Wanna Talk?

My email address is info at this domain. Alternatively, a contact form is also available.

I Also Have A Website of the Same Name

Technical Information

“Maria Celina”, hosted by Web Hosting Buzz, was registered on June 16, 2009. It serves as a general online presence consisting of a portfolio and blog. The name of the domain is my complete first name. All views expressed in this website (excluding comments) reflects my personal opinions and may not reflect the views of my employer.

This website is coded in accordance to CSS 2.1 and XHTML 1.0 Transitional standards, with some jQuery and Javascript thrown into the mix. Except for the Tumblr, this site is WordPress-powered.

Other tools used are my 15″ MacBook Pro, Adobe Photoshop CS3, Dreamweaver, OneButton FTP, and a consistent supply of caffeine. For statistics, this website is monitored with Statcounter.

Additional credits to go The Theme Museum, Komodo Media’s Social Media Icon Pack, the Cycle Plugin.

Online History

I have tinkered with websites since 2001, and have been blogging for slightly less than that. I bought my first domain in 2002. I started off as a personal blogger, using my bought space as a repository for my thoughts and documentations of my everyday encounters. Recently, I decided to use the tool to further my understanding of design and my other personal interests by networking with others on the digital ether. Here are the domains I have used before “www.mariacelina.net”:

www.ofrainbows.com (2008-2009) – Personal website, photo blog, & portfolio.
www.notbrainwashersafe.com (2008-2009) – Public photo blog & private personal blog.
www.deportmaria.org (2005-2008) – Personal blog. One of my favourite previous projects.
www.omegajuliet.org (2004-2005) – Personal blog.
www.airbus47.org (2003-2004) – Personal blog.
www.chantique.net (2002-2003) – Personal blog.

For any inquiries about this website, please refer to the Frequently Asked Questions.