Experience

Latest Work

Audrey Valbuena











Digital designer and creative developer specializing in systems and storytelling









About


Hey, I’m Audrey – a digital designer, storyteller and developer based in Brooklyn, NY.  I currently work at The Wall Street Journal as a designer on the Visual Storytelling team, building custom, interactive storytelling experiences and supporting the growth of the storytelling tools and design systems.

Previously, I worked as a Senior Designer at The Washington Post. There, my day-to-day consisted of a mix of designing one-off stories, developing aesthetics and components for series of coverage, and long-term systems thinking work. 

Before that, I tried my hand as an Associate Product Manager on the Design Systems and Accessibility team at The New York Times. There I helped ship dark mode to news apps.  

What carries through all my work is a commitment to creative storytelling, empathetic product decisions, and intentional and accessible design solutions, no matter the product or system. 

Outside of work, I have a ceramic practice under the name Bad Rat Studio. I can usually be found in cafes across Brooklyn deeply engrossed in the latest work of fiction, or crocheting during my morning commute. 

Awards & recognition


Pulitzer Awards

SND 47
  • Silver, Individual: Multiple Topics Story Page Design Portfolio 

SND 45
  • Bronze, Design: Investigative,  Searching for Maura
  • Bronze, Design Investigative, The Collection
  • Bronze, LOC: Investigative or Public Service, The Collection
  • Award of Excellence, Product, Reduced Motion
  • Award of Excellence, Portfolio: Story Page Design

SPD 57
  • Medal Finalist, “Web: Custom Feature Design”, The Queer Quarantine






Selected work


Click on each story block to view the live piece. 

When possible, gift links are used.









Over 4,732 Messages, He Fell In Love With An AI Chatbot. Now He’s Dead. (2026)

Role: design, development, art direction
See how a lab grown diamond is made (2024)

Role: pitched quiz modules, design, development
Searching for Maura (2023)

Role: development, accessibility testing, alt-text
One Ukrainian City’s Agonizing Year as the Russian Army Closed In (2026)

Role: design, development
The Queer Quarantine: Eleven photographers and one writer on how the pandemic altered lives in the LGBTQ+ community. (2021)

Role: design, development, print design
The Year of Endurance: Hope and uncertainty amid a pandemic that wouldn’t end (2021)

Role: design, development, print design
The Explosive Addictive World of Mystery Toy Collecting (2025)

Role: design, development, photography, reporting
Do You Know How to Behave at Work? (2025)

Role: art direction, design, development
‘Girl, Take Your Crazy Pills!’ Antidepressants Recast as a Hot Lifestyle Accessory (2026)

Role: design, development
A means of escape: Kickflipping, boardsliding and socializing: Shaw Skate Park is a welcoming “third place.” (2024)

Role: story pitch, design, development
The hidden life of seeds (2024)

Role: design, development
Revealing the Smithsonian’s `racial brain collection` (2023)

Role: design, development




This site is always a work in progress. It was last updated July 2026.

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