Today we’d like to introduce you to Yousef Bushehri.
Yousef, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I was born and raised in Kuwait, where my whole family still lives. As a 17-year-old I was awarded a scholarship from the Kuwaiti government that funded my higher education so far (bachelor’s of science in architecture, a master’s of architecture focusing on digital media, and a master’s of science in architecture focusing on health design). Between my 2 masters degree, I moved back home and practiced as an architect for a year, and was selected as a resident artist at the Google Cultural Institute at the Google office in Paris. Over the years I’ve taught various classes and workshops, usually focusing on graphics and software. I am currently working on my Ph.D. in architecture focusing on Evidence-Based Design (which studies how the built environment affects health outcomes) and Universal Design (which studies the various ways in which all designed things, be it spaces or objects, can be usable by everyone regardless of gender, race, age, or ability level).
Has it been a smooth road?
It hasn’t been as smooth as I would like to be, but I guess the same is true for everyone doing something they care about. One of the big struggles is being an international student. Ironically today is election day and I’m wearing a sticker that I made saying “I can’t vote. So you better have.” Being a foreigner is difficult, but I think being from the middle east adds an additional hurdle that I have to face constantly. When I am being hired for the semester to teach a short class so much paperwork has to be filled out and filed. Every time I go anywhere on a plane I have to allocate an extra hour or two because chances that I’ll be “randomly selected” are pretty high. I don’t want to make it sound like people have been in any way negative to me; I lived in DC for 6 years, France for a year, and now GA for over 2. People are kind, curious, and want to know about my part of the world. I think its the system that is designed to make it difficult for people like me.
Who, or what, deserves a lot of credit for where you are today?
There have been a few people that played a major role in the trajectory of my life.
1st is my best friend from college. The semester that everyone studied abroad, she and I decided not to. We ended up spending a lot of time fiddling with graphics software and we kind of taught ourselves how to use them. We made up a bunch of projects for ourselves and would do work for our friends. We both became very obsessed with graphics and digital media and decided to go to grad school together and study digital media, animation, modeling, etc. She and I ended up studying in Paris together.
2nd person is my advisor in grad school (the first time around). She was my architecture studio professor as a freshman, and she was always present in my life in the peripheries. I would go to her for advice or to bounce ideas off of her. 6 years later she was my advisor on my thesis project and taught a lot about how to think and research. We both ended up at Georgia Tech too, and she has taught me a lot about teaching lately. I think that without her in my life, things would be very different.
3rd is another very close friend of mine that I met in high school. We actually met online because of mutual interests in music and books and our friendship developed into a brotherhood. He is currently an artist that has his work shown all over the world. He has taught me a lot about to view the world through lenses other than the ones we’ve been prescribed.
Do you have a favorite type of client or project?
My favorite type of work to do (when I’m not neck deep in school work) is visual graphic work. I love getting lost in photoshop, illustrator, after effects, and indesign. Whether it’s an illustration, a layout, a video diagram; I love getting lost in a digital canvas.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
I’m not sure there would be anything I would have done differently. I truly believe that our present state is based on every choice and action we’ve ever made. Everything leads to our present point. Maybe I would get more sleep? (I do have really bad fomo though). I would definitely call my parents more often, and procrastinate less.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.behance.net/bushehri
- Email: yousefbushehri@gmail.com
- Instagram: @leyousef
- Facebook: facebook.com/bushehri
Image Credit:
Works uploaded are my own property. Photo of my taken by Kirsten Gross and is being used with her permission.
