Hanna Benihoud

Hanna Benihoud is a London-based interdisciplinary creative, who works primarily in the realms of public art, design, and illustration. In 2016 she decided to leave her full-time job in architecture to set up her own design studio – choosing to focus her career on her ambition of bringing together a love for architecture and art.

Hanna is passionate about projects that have a strong social message, and often works with local communities and resident’s groups. Using the public realm as her canvas, amplifying and sharing people’s stories and experiences are at the centre of her practice. She creates work that is closely tied to its location and inspired by the people who live in those spaces. Feminism is also an important theme Hanna explores as artist, who tells us that after years working in the male-dominated architecture industry, she’s developed an “undertone of feminist rage below the surface in a lot of my artwork”.

‘Girls of the Light’, is a project that Hanna self-funded in 2022, which is formed of a series of illustrations that illuminate public spaces in areas where women do not feel safe at night. Another piece that focuses on similar themes is, ‘TOO SEXY FOR THE STREETS’, a poster series created in collaboration with the local community in Tottenham, north London, which explores how sexuality and objectification intersects with public spaces.

Hanna has pinpointed three key elements that are at the foundation of her current creative practice: telling stories, making things and getting paid. As she tells us, she loves creating work that “exists in the real world and shapes our environment”, this stems from her background in architecture but also from a desire to make her work as accessible to the public as possible. Public Art is a space where she can explore ideas that resonate with local people and be an “advocate for change for women and other marginalised groups, and convince the powers that be that it is worth investing in”.

We talked to Hanna to find out more about how she approaches the creative process, developing her visual style and her views on making the creative industry more inclusive.

Can you tell us about your career path and why you decided to start your own interdisciplinary studio?

I have always loved art since I was a child, but I never understood it to be a job available to regular people! As an academic student I was encouraged to study architecture which could fulfil my love for creativity and provide me a career. I did just that, after studying for seven years, I qualified as an architect and worked full time in practice. But I could not shake my childhood dream. When I turned 30 I left my job and began my own studio with the ambition of creating a practice that lives between the worlds of art and architecture. That was six years ago. It has not been an easy ride, but I have not looked back since.

“When I turned 30 I left my job and began my own studio with the ambition of creating a practice that lives between the worlds of art and architecture.”

What is your studio ethos/approach and what kind of work do you enjoy working on?

I have a 3-pronged approach to my practice.

Tell stories – I want to advocate for others by amplifying and sharing people’s stories.
Make things – I love creating work that is tangible and exists in the real world and shapes our environment.
Get paid – I am not prepared to be a starving artist.

How have you developed your visual aesthetic throughout your career and have there been any pivotal moments?

I started off my career as a 3-dimensional designer because of my training as an architect. When I started my creative studio, I wanted to add murals to my practice as it is such an accessible route into public art. At this point I did not have a strong visual identity. I started an anonymous Instagram account and challenged myself to post illustrations every day. The repetition got me to a place where I found a visual style I loved, and I got to practise without worrying about how bad my work was! I did challenges like 36 Days of Type and inktober to find a community online whilst I honed my skills.

Your work is vibrant and colourful, what are your go to places to find inspiration?

I love high/low culture. I take as much inspiration from the Tate as the chicken shop. I love people who push the boundaries of public art, from large-scale sculpture like Here We Come, Here we Rise by Lakwena and architects IF_DO collaboration in Brent Cross Town to HELCH the infamous motorway tagger. Recently, I have found Instagram has tilted from being inspiring to overwhelming, so I am trying to unplug more and seek inspiration in the real world. Luckily for me I live in London, so I don’t have to go very far.

Are there any standout projects that you’ve worked on recently and why are they important to you?

Every year I work on a public art passion project. This year the project was called ‘TOO SEXY FOR THE STREETS’. It is a guerrilla paste up project exploring sexuality and objectification in public space. I hosted a free collage workshop for people to share their experiences and transformed their stories into site specific posters. The work explored how identity, gender and intimacy intersects with public space. This project was important to me because I wanted to create a dialogue about these important issues that are experienced in public yet rarely discussed in public.

“This project was important to me because I wanted to create a dialogue about these important issues that are experienced in public yet rarely discussed in public.”

What does your process look like when approaching a new creative brief and do you have any tips/go-to resources that you could recommend?

I really value other people’s experience/opinions, particularly those outside the industry. I think it is important to be humble enough to allow those to enrich your work. So my tip is to not try and solve a creative brief from the confines of your studio. Leave your space, ask questions, interview people, eavesdrop, people watch.

Has being a woman impacted your career and what challenges have you had to overcome?

The built environment is a man’s world. To this day it is mostly designed and built by men. In architecture I was often the only woman in the room. I think this is what inspires the undertone of feminist rage below the surface of a lot of my artwork. I try to sneak it into public space through playful colour! If I can’t find a commissioner for a feminist project, I try my best to fund it myself. For example ‘GIRLS OF THE LIGHT’ is a project illuminating public spaces women do not feel safe in at night. I think my ongoing challenge is to advocate for change for women and other marginalised groups and convince the powers that be that it is worth investing in.

“The built environment is a man’s world. To this day it is mostly designed and built by men. In architecture I was often the only woman in the room. I think this is what inspires the undertone of feminist rage below the surface of a lot of my artwork.”

How do you think we can encourage greater diversity and inclusion across the creative industries?

I think a good place to start is to actually pay people fairly for their creative work. I think too often a creative career, especially being an artist, is a luxury for the privileged. I find endless open calls with onerous applications, or requests for free pitches or ridiculously low fees, extremely exhausting. It means this career is treated as either a pastime for the wealthy or you must have such a commitment to the cause you must be willing to live off beans until you ‘make it’. This excludes so many people from even trying.

If you could go back to the beginning and start your career again what would tell your younger self?

Careers come in chapters. You don’t have to have everything sorted by the time you are 25. You won’t have everything sorted by the time you are 35. But that’s ok, life is long, you have time. This is very much a marathon, not a sprint.

“…life is long, you have time. This is very much a marathon, not a sprint.”

Do you have any top tips for people considering a career in the creative industries?

Your network is as important as your talent, you need to nurture both. Basically, practice loads and don’t be a dick.