Photography March 24, 2016
ADC Travels: Mariam Guessous
Art director & travel enthusiast Mariam Guessous shares why travel is the stuff of life.
by Lauren Festa
As Photography Month draws to a close and in the spirit of Spring Break, we thought we’d bring you a little escape, courtesy of ADC Travels; a series where we virtually tag along with our favorite creatives as they travel for work and pleasure.
Mariam Guessous’s business card may read “Senior Art Director” but her real title has too many slashes to list. From Creative Director of the Madison’s Collective to founder of Just Add Feminism — a social movement encouraging everyone to declare themselves feminists — the self-professed daydreamer/book hoarder keeps her days full. Originally from Marrakech, Mariam speaks four and a half languages and is passionate about diversity and social good. She also owns more Chucks than is probably normal and is a proud doggy parent to a rescue pitbull named Apple. Living in Brooklyn, Mariam is an Art Director at DigitasLBi by day, nurturing her writerly soul at night, publishing personal essays, advice articles and Haiku, studying Creative Non‐Fiction at Gotham Writers and working on launching a new blog.
“Travel is the single most important thing we should be doing as a generation. Travel expands our perspective, makes us more creative and brings us closer to humanity.”
It was one of her essays about traveling that caught our attention. In it, Mariam explains how travel makes you more creative, more mindful and more human. “I really believe,” she says, “that travel is the single most important thing we should be doing as a generation. Travel expands our perspective, makes us more creative and brings us closer to humanity. People who travel a lot tend to see the world differently, they understand that wherever they go, people might have different cultures or languages but they are ultimately the same. We are all one. I think that understanding is extremely important in our global age and will help shape generations to come.” Peep her gorgeous snaps above, which include colors, textures and pieces of the sky that inspire her.
Name: Mariam Guessous
Location: Brooklyn, NY
Profession: Art Director, Writer
mariamguessous.com
mariamguessous@gmail.com

“I grew up in Marrakech so to me, it’s not exotic, it’s not unfamiliar, it’s just my hometown. Every time I go back to visit, I find myself paying attention to small details I never noticed before. The design of a rug, the color of a wall, the afternoon sky. I look for shapes, textures, and hidden messages—it’s all in the details. I love getting a close look at the culture and capturing it’s beauty and simplicity.”