Yahya Rushdi is a designer who moves effortlessly between the tools of photography, design and illustration and he’s an active advocate for living in Duluth.

Y. R.: The neat about being a graphic designer is that I’ll usually start with paper and pencil to sketch an idea, but once it comes into fruition on the computer, there is a wide range of mediums that I can use to communicate a message through. Whether that be in the form of social media, billboards, websites or poster. Sky’s the limit! I like to think myself as a visual communicator. If there is a problem to solve, or a specific outcome that needs to be achieved, I’ll collect information and analyze it to figure out the best solution, visually. I lean to be more simple, but effective in my work.

I’m also an avid Instagrammer (@yahyarushdi)! I mostly take pictures of Duluth’s beautiful landscape and showcase local businesses. We live in a pretty spiffy city, so why not show it off?

Minimalistic icons that represent popular landmarks in Duluth. This was made for the Duluth Art Institute’s Design DLH Pop-Up Shop & Exhibit. Can you figure out what they are?

I’ve always been a visual person since I can remember, enjoying not only print and digital graphics, but also architecture. I remember the first time I truly embraced visual communication when I entered a school-wide contest for designing my middle school’s yearbook cover and won. Not only was it something I enjoyed doing, but it gave me confidence which I sorely lacked in those awkward years. Of course, when I look back at it, it is absolutely horrendous, but that’s besides the point! I would then take my passion to my other passion of playing music. I helped my middle and high school orchestras with designing concert programs/posters and sweatshirt prints. I eventually took a graphic design course at UMD my freshman year and I never looked back.

Instagramming (Is that a verb?) has only been in the past couple of years. Although I wouldn’t necessarily call myself a photographer!

A collection of pictures from my Instagram account @yahyarushdi.

I think the biggest challenge for me, and for many other folks in the creative field, is having confidence in my work. We tend to get in our own heads on how good our work is and compare our work to others. I’m slowly learning to recognize the uniqueness and individuality in everyone’s work, so while many other people might use a similar style or medium, the result will always be you. I love art and design, so that is a reward of in itself, but to be able to visually create people’s dreams, is an amazing feeling.

Snapshot of a quirky personal project. A 100-day illustrated countdown to the highly-anticipated movie in 2015, Star Wars: Force Awakens. Check out all of them here.

You can find some of my work (personal and professional) on my portfolio website: yahyarushdi.com. I am slowly updating it, so stay tuned on for more. You can also follow me on my random Duluth adventures through my Instagram, @yahyarushdi. I love connecting with people, so please don’t hesistate to send me a note on either of these channels!

“Don of Duluth”: An illustration of former mayor Don Ness for the Duluth Art Institute’s exhibition Hero/Villain/Savior/Scoundrel: Images of Jim Carlson & Don Ness.

I am currently working on a poster design for a show in Minneapolis that has to do with identity and equality in the creative field. I’m pretty excited about it. I am also working on marketing materials for a summer event promoting local businesses, in addition to planning for Duluth’s new big winter event, the Duluth Winter Village! Save the date: December 2-3. RSVP on Facebook!

The Duluth Winter Village logo. I was incredibly fortunate to work on the visual identity for this community event.