Laura Boushnak is a Palestinian photographer based in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Her work mainly focuses on the Arab world, looking at issues that stem from her own personal experience of gender, education, and aftermath of war.
After receiving a degree in Sociology from the Lebanese University in Beirut in 1999, Boushnak began her career as a photographer for the Associated Press in Lebanon. She then went on to work with the Agence France-Presse (AFP) at its Middle East hub in Cyprus and its headquarters in Paris. During this nine-year span, Boushnak’s experience included covering hard news in conflict zones such as the war in Iraq and the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war. Since 2008, Laura Boushnak has been working as an independent photographer, commissioned for editorial assignments by The New York Times and other publications, while also working on long-term personal projects in the Middle East.
Boushnak is a TED fellow and has been invited to give talks in different parts of the world, including two separate TED talks in 2014 and 2016, where she shared the stories behind her ‘I Read I Write’ and ‘Survivor’ projects. The former revolves around Arab women’s education and literacy, while the latter highlights the aftermath of war and its impact on individuals long after the fighting has ended. Both projects have received honorable awards and recognition including the first Getty Images/ lean-in editorial grant, The Terry O'Neill Photography Award in the United Kingdom, and two honorable mentions in the UNICEF Photo of the Year Award.
Her work has been part of public and private collections, including the British Museum, and has been exhibited in galleries and museums around the world.
Laura Boushnak on Social Media:
Instagram: @lauraboushnak
Twitter: @LauraBoushnak
