LAURA
BOUSHNAK

Laura Boushnak is a Kuwait-born Palestinian visual storyteller and documentary photographer. Her work mainly focuses on the Arab world, looking at issues that she finds stem from her own personal experience of gender, education, and the aftermath of war.  

About the Artist

After receiving a degree in Sociology from the Lebanese University in Beirut in 1999, Boushnak infused her interest in social issues with her passion for the visual arts and 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. 

As of 2008, she has been working as an independent photographer, commissioned for editorial assignments by the New York Times and other publications, while also giving more of her time to long-term personal projects in the Middle East.

Boushnak’s main focus has been on her on-going projects, “I Read I Write” and “Survivor.”  The former revolving 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’neil Photography Award in the UK, and two honorable mentions in the UNICEF Photo of the Year Award. 

Her work has been part of public and private collections, which include the British Museum, and has been exhibited in galleries and museums around the world, such as the Birmingham Museum in the UK, the Sharjah Art Museum in the UAE, and The Arp Museum Bahnhof Ralandseck in Germany. 

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 to a worldwide audience. 

Awards and Fellowships

2020: Alexia Foundation Finalist 

2019: Alexia Foundation Finalist

2016: UNICEF Photo of the Year Award / |Honourable Mention

2016: Arab Fund For Art and Culture Grant / RAWIYA Collective

2015: Prince Cluse Fund Grant 

2014: TED Global Fellowship

2014: Getty Images / Lean inn editorial grant

2013: Winner of the Terry O'neill award.

2013: UNICEF Photo Of the Year Award|Honourable Mention

2012: Lens Exposure Award |multimedia |Honourable Mention 

2011: 1st Honourable Mention For Professional Category IPC.

2010: Shortlisted for highly commended entries at Freedom to Create Prize for the project I Read I Write.