We, as the Designer Interviews ("DI") had the distinct pleasure and opportunity to interview award-winning, most creative and innovative Neda Barbazi ("NB").

I am a multidisciplinary designer, researcher, and creative strategist, who explores the intersection of Design, Science, Technology, Business, and Human Behavior. I am passionate about gathering insights and driving creative business solutions through human needs. When I'm not glued to the monitor, you may find me sketching on the back of a napkin, hanging with others, walking in the rain, or enjoying a cup of hot coffee by the fire while watching raindrops race across the window with soft music playing.

Neda Barbazi Designs

We are pleased to share with you original and innovative design work by Neda Barbazi.

Designer Interview of Neda Barbazi:

DI: Could you please tell us more about your art and design background? What made you become an artist/designer? Have you always wanted to be a designer?

NB : I have grown up surrounded with art and architecture. Ever since childhood, while walking down the river front to the old Bazaar on the way to Shah square – a UNESCO’s World Heritage site – I would always find myself in the midst of artistry everywhere. Astounding architectural marvels, the palaces, the bazaars, the gardens, the bridges, with their spectacular designs, mosaic tiles, painted walls, and cerulean domes all around me, mesmerized me and gradually, yet subliminally brought about an acute awareness and fiery enthusiasm for artistry in me. I have also been blessed to raised among artists in my own family. All of this always encouraged me to pay attention to details and planted the seed of passion for art in my heart. It is no wonder that I chose design as a means of merging my interests in art, architecture, history, science and technology. Pursuing my dreams, I have also been blessed to travel around the globe, from my birthplace to all other lands I have visited and lived in: from east to the west. I feel that my dual educational background, my travels, my genuine curiosity and love for learning different school of thoughts have served me greatly to build a diverse perspective. My interest in design is no longer a school-girl’s dream. As a testament to my desire to stay true to my passion, I have worn many hats throughout my academic and professional career, having been multidisciplinary designer, researcher, creative strategist, artist, trained-architect, and entrepreneur allows me to enrich human’s lives through designing modest yet beyond-expected values.

DI: What is "design" for you?

NB : Design is connecting dots to simplify lives and bringing excitement to everyday life.

DI: What kinds of works do you like designing most?

NB : At the root of my design philosophy to the present, it is a continuing curiosity in the way things are and the way they interact with each other in different kinds of settings. I satisfy my curiosity by focusing on creating socially responsive, culturally relevant, and technologically appropriate lasting experiences. With a profound interest for uncovering latent, unmet human needs, I would like to always maintain a close link between body and object. The resulting design blurs the boundaries between subject and the object with sensitivity to new trends and maximizing adaptability to the environment.

DI: What is your most favorite design, could you please tell more about it?

NB : Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe | Peter Eisenman | Berlin, Germany. The Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, is highlighting the historic responsibility taken for the crime while expressing remorse for it. Remarkably, the memorial has rather become a reminder of loss, terror and survival for all the individuals as for the Jewish community and people of Germany. Memorials in general have always been a powerful storytelling landscapes with conventional symbols to be understood by the majority. The New York architect, Peter Eisenman, was able to find an unconventional, more innovative way to express the story behind an object of remembrance. It consists of 2,711 rectangular, homogeneous concrete slabs arranged in a grid pattern across a sloping field. “As visitors descend into the site, the slabs rise above them and their perspective become disoriented, fragmented; they can hear voices, sounds, laughter, but cannot locate the source; they pass blindly through the grid’s intersections, unsure what they will find around the corner.” The uneven monotonous gray with a smooth finish concrete slabs give many visitors a moment of dizziness or even ambiguity. Its openness and abstraction give them space to confront the topic in their own personal way. “It is a cold, hard, deaf, heavy, extremely un-natural environment, contrasted with the Tiergarten, Berlin’s largest park, across the street.” “Walking down one of these passages is disorientating, and scary; you can’t see who is approaching you, nor who is behind. The tilting ground and lack of vision offers some small idea of the Jewish experience from WWII: your past snatched away, your future insecure, little hope of escape.”

DI: Which aspects of a design do you focus more during designing?

NB : Human Needs + Beauty + Ease of Use, while keeping in mind that "Less is More".

DI: What makes a design successful?

NB : Simplicity in Complexity!

DI: Can you talk a little about your design process?

NB : Sketching, brainstorming, talking and creating with people for people. Synthesizing abstract ideas and datain ways that are easy to use and digest. Reducing information down to the essentials to bring clarity to designs. Deliveringminimalist solutions for complex problems. Working closelywith my team throughall phases fromconceptualization to execution.

DI: What is your "golden rule" in design?

NB : Seeing, Looking, Hearing, Listening, Touching, Exploring, Learning

DI: What skills are most important for a designer?

NB : Persistence, Persistence, and Persistence.