Today we’d like to introduce you to Anush Harutyunyan.
Anush, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I am originally from Armenia, from a family of engineers. I am actually the last generation which is known as USSR kids 🙂
I grew up when the Soviet Union had collapsed and Armenia was in a war. We were living within a blockade and did not have access to electricity, water, or food. Winters in Armenia are very cold. I’m still not sure how my parents did it, but somehow they still managed to make a very happy life for us kids. We were an extremely close community where everyone shared food and everyone knew each other.
At that time I was playing violin – my first profession was as a violinist actually – but at night I always sat down to draw sketches of both apartment and home floor plans. Even at that time, I was trying to understand how I can design a living space to be more efficient as well as take advantage of the local natural resource as much as possible. After a while, the war finally ended and I moved to Germany to continue my music career. But I still had that feeling that I was missing something very important in my life! Very soon after, I met an architect who exposed me to a whole new world of architecture. I very soon realized that this was the missing part of myself! I decided to change my life path at the last moment and went to architecture school. During the next several years, I lived in different countries and worked in various international architectural firms. All of these experiences helped me tremendously to form me into the professional and individual I am today.
Five years ago, I got a chance to move to the United States. At that time, I was actually very happy both in my professional and personal life in Armenia. But if a new door opens up for me, I always prefer to try and walk through before saying no to new opportunities. So I moved directly to Los Angeles and very quickly realized that this is the city for me! It provides for an endless laboratory for architects, urbanists and artists. I ended up attending my dream Graduate School – the Southern California Institute of Architecture, SCI_Arc – and graduated from there with a Postgraduate Degree in the Design of Cities, led by Pritzker Prize-winning architect and living legend Thom Mayne, the founder of Morphosis. It was a dream of mine which actually did come true! Meeting all of the great minds in that school and gaining exposure to very talented students from all around the world was an incredible experience! It changed both my life and my vision of the future dramatically.
From then on, I knew that I lived in a country where the possibilities of growth are endless. My final project at SCI_Arc, entitled “ICEBERG: Living off the grid” (partnering with fellow classmate Shanar Moslehi) won several prizes, including A+D Museum Design Award. This project was so important for me because it is a prototype for a self-sustained neighborhood in LA. As architects and urban designers, we have a responsibility to make our buildings and neighborhoods more sustainable.
In addition, I think that LA, as an urban landscape, is so interesting for me because it’s not a typical or traditional city like what you’ll find in Armenia or in Europe. This is why with my friend and classmate at the time, Ziao Zhou, started an urban research project titled “LA’s Debris – Leftovers of Forgotten Histories”. It is an ongoing project we’re still working together on to this day. We’re planning to create not only a book but also a mobile app with maps and tours, which will include specific places and buildings in LA. There will be various categories, such as Architectural Cosplay, Evil Sites, Selfie Spaces, Weird Icons and Cold Leftovers. It is going to be so much fun!
Right now, I am working at Gensler, which is the world’s largest architectural firm. I am really passionate about both my work and the great projects I have had the chance to be a part of. LA is not only an urban laboratory, as I said, but also an ideal place to encounter a very wide variety of patterns and people! My new project is actually going to be about us – the people who make up Los Angeles! I think being open to experimenting with new opportunities, being courageous, and always being honest with myself were the key factors which pushed that little girl drawing plans under the candlelight into the woman I am today. And this is just the beginning…
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It was not a smooth road for sure. The most difficult obstacle and challenge was to not lose the belief in myself, always go forward without any regret and don’t looking back in any situation even if in some life-changing moments almost everyone was telling me it is impossible to do. Pushing the limits and putting yourself outside of the comfort zone are the main. Also, I am very fortunate regarding people surrounding me. Always met incredibly talented and unique people on my journey who inspired me a lot.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am an architect and urban designer with work experience in Los Angeles, London, Moscow, Yerevan on different award-winning design buildings. I am a winner of international competitions, workshops, biennales and was a member of the ‘Aurora Prize” an Annual International Humanitarian Award.
Having a musical background helped me tremendously both understanding the art/history and being a disciplined person from the early childhood. That background and experience of change in roles in different dimensions throughout my academic and professional career has given me the humility and insight to see and understand the responsibilities of both an architect and an urbanist. I believe in my social duty as a designer and urban thinker to push the boundaries of practicing and teaching into transforming communities.
I also like to mix different disciplines. For example, have a line of handmade organic oils which I started to make during the pandemic just for myself and for my friends, but in a result it started to be sucsessful and I sold a big amount of it to collect money for humanitarian help for Armenia.
For the recent years of my career, I am really proud of being able to meet and learn from the people who were legends for me, be a student of my only dream school, work in the company which one of the best in the world. It is a good feeling, you know.
Maybe one of the things that set me apart from others but also connects with a huge community of people who have this will as well is a desire of making not only the US but our world/planet a better place to live and create.
The crisis has affected us all in different ways. How has it affected you and any important lessons or epiphanies you can share with us?
I think we went thru (and still not totally out of it) the situation when everybody had a huge lifetime transformation… As much as it was unreal difficult but I also appreciate the lessons I learned. Few of the big ones are: be grateful for the freedom of movement, nurture the nature, be alone and silent with yourself and create-create-create… Also, I was really enjoying the sounds of nature in our city because of the absence of cars and people….As much as for humans it was a time of restrictions, I feel for the nature it was a time of freedom!
Contact Info:
- Instagram:Â https://instagram.com/anushnushnush?igshid=OGQ5ZDc2ODk2ZA==
- Linkedin:Â https://www.linkedin.com/in/anush-harutyunyan/
- Youtube:Â https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GdVIOsLMkQY
