PG Tips Podcast: Ep4 with Najwa Alhariri
Post-Grad Community Stories | 26 January 2022
You can find the published piece here.
For the fourth episode of PG Tips I was very excited to talk to Najwa Alhariri back in October when her course has just started - a refreshing insight on how the programme and settling in London felt so far, as I am sure this possible anxiety of transitioning to a new environment is familiar to many of you - whether you are a current or prospective student… the conversation followed with great warmth as I remembered that feeling myself; it was amazing to hear Najwa’s journey building up to this wholly exciting experience at UAL.
As a current student of the Post Graduate Diploma in Interior Architecture and Spatial Design at Chelsea College, Najwa described how the course feels like a mix between the practical and the creative. Initially wanting to be an architect, she became a civil engineer instead - which deals mostly with the practicalities of building a building, the physics and and mathematics of it all - the concrete and steel that makes the design work in real life, you could say. Her evident passion for the ‘more creative side’ is what pushed her to apply for this course, which is an incredibly brave thing to do as it is still a big career change within the industry.
It sounded like the choice of taking this course was quite valuable for Najwa. She had the opportunity to expand her knowledge and network in meeting a wide variety of students from different backgrounds, some not even from a creative industry. That is what is so wonderful about post-graduate courses - to grow among like-minded people who have led a completely different trajectory to you to get to this point, it’s very exciting! Of course, networking and talking to people does not come naturally to everyone and that is okay - as Najwa pointed out, you don’t have to be a fluttering social butterfly all the time to build a meaningful network, but making little connections here and there will lead you to opportunities you never expected.
The desire to push the design of interior architecture where humans can, not only live comfortably, but also be immersed in an aesthetically pleasing environment is what drives Najwa in her passion to create innovative spaces. From the description of her ongoing projects at the time (including bringing favourite hues to life in a physical space and another playing with the tension between organic and geometric forms), it seems there is a real appetite in bringing the outdoors in - especially in such metropolitan environments. There is a high demand for interior/spatial design as more and more human spaces are sprouting with the times.
The challenges of settling in a completely new city like London was also discussed - inevitably, it was hard, but attending social gatherings arranged by the university such as the Post-Grad Mixer Events held at inspiring locations like art and design exhibitions was very helpful in helping her meet new people in a foreign country. It was also where I was able to meet and invite her onto this platform. To see the new conversations grow between new students during the event was amazing!
Najwa also gave some tips on making the move to London as smooth as possible: arrange a place to stay early, research the area and services such as underground stations (essential!), and another I found particularly useful: making sure you have all the things that will help you feel comfortable in your new surroundings, especially in the early days - and this can look different different for each person. Whether this be a touch of fairy lights in the corner or photos and posters to include in the room decor, anything that will add to the feeling of stability in your new home…trust the advice from an interior/ spatial designer!
The insightful conversation really highlighted the impact of interior design on people’s emotions and well-being, opening my eyes to how we move through almost exclusively indoor spaces in our everyday life. It is thanks to creatives such as Najwa who meticulously design our spaces that we can enjoy our environments, old or new, just that much more. She admits that it is a new challenge every time a new project pops up, but believes that if you have a passion for your craft, you will be able to overcome those challenges and come out stronger - an inspiring viewpoint to have especially in a postgraduate course.
I was happy to see that Najwa was enjoying her course at Chelsea College so far, taking the chance of taking a creative course in contrast to her civil engineering background… here’s to exciting new starts and challenges in all our creative journeys!