Designer journey
Some people grow up surrounded by mountains or by the sea. I grew up surrounded by both.
I’m Antrea Chrysanthou, a UX/UI designer from Cyprus, a small but vibrant island in the Eastern Mediterranean where curiosity travels far beyond the horizon. For more than four years, I’ve been designing digital experiences, driven by a simple belief:
The best design is the one that's invisible to those who need help and seamless for everyone else.
My journey began at the University of Cyprus, where I studied Computer Science. There I learned the foundations of programming, algorithmic thinking, and human-computer interaction. But the most defining moments came during my research thesis with Styliani Kleanthous.
Together we explored two fascinating questions.
First, how children and adults experience Augmented Reality differently. Second, whether brain-wave tracking could reveal how users think while playing Minecraft. Watching technology through the lens of human behavior revealed a simple but powerful truth:
User experience shapes the trajectory of technology.
That realization led me to the Netherlands, where I completed a Master's degree in Interaction Technology at the University of Twente.
I learned that interaction doesn't live only on screens. It lives in environments, communities, and human connections.
The pandemic challenged me to rethink how people connect through technology. Being surrounded by classmates from vastly different cultures, abilities, and backgrounds deepened that thinking into a genuine passion.
One project allowed me to apply this directly by using gamification techniques to help people with substance use disorders and cognitive disabilities complete therapy forms. It reinforced my belief that thoughtful design can genuinely improve people’s lives.
After graduating, I joined a Dutch technology agency El Niño.
Working there taught me how design lives within real business environments. I collaborated closely with developers, clients, and project managers, learning how crucial communication and empathy are for delivering successful products.
I worked on highly varied products, from complex data visualization platforms like VRM and large design systems such as Just Eat Takeaway, to full product design projects like Autoselector. I gained experience in creating branding and style guides, as well as designing flows, wireframes, and prototypes.
Working on a technological agency also meant constant learning. I had the chance to observe and collaborate with talented designers, including my design lead Tom ten Voorde, who taught me invaluable lessons about art, usability, scalability, and precision.
Eventually, I brought those lessons back home to Cyprus.
For over a year, at Techlink, I've led UX/UI work across a striking range of industries: fintech tools for banks, government accessibility projects, and the mobile app for Cyprus's main electricity provider.
And then, perhaps most unexpectedly: football. Deeply woven into Cypriot culture, it pulled me into a completely new user community. Leading the UX/UI for a football club's all-in-one application meant immersing myself in fans, their behaviors, their expectations, and what it would take to create something they'd genuinely love.
What keeps me excited about design is the variety of people behind every product.
From banking professionals to therapy patients, from data analysts to football fans, each project is an opportunity to step into someone else’s world and design something meaningful for them.
Technology evolves quickly, and I evolve with it. I actively incorporate AI tools into my workflow to design faster, explore ideas more deeply, and create better products.
And while my portfolio shows the outcomes, the real story lives in the process behind them.
If you’d like to learn more about how I think, design, and collaborate, I’d love to connect.
