I am a graphic designer and illustrator, but I studied architecture and began my professional life as an architect. Before explaining how and why I transitioned into graphic design and illustration from architecture, I want to start with how I chose architecture in the first place.
As a child, I loved drawing and doing all kinds of crafts, but I also enjoyed math and science. When I started preparing for university, the inevitable question kept coming: “So, what are you aiming for?” Earlier in life, I had answers like “I want to be a painter” or “I want to be an astronaut” just like everyone else. But this time, the answer had real consequences. And I didn’t know myself well enough yet to understand what I wanted to do.
That’s when architecture started to capture my attention. A creative field where I could imagine, draw, and design, but also a technical discipline of order, math, geometry, and logic. I had nothing against the technical side, but I just couldn’t give up on the creative side to fully embrace it. Therefore, it was architecture, it was settled.
Luckily, I did get into the architecture school I envisioned. And did I regret that? I won’t get into the difficulties of architectural education here; that could be a topic on its own later. But if you have anyone in your life who’s been through it, you can ask them. I believe it’s a universal experience. In the first two years, I can’t say I designed anything. It was mostly about understanding the basic design principles. After that, I actually started enjoying it. It became about creation and learning while creating, and I loved it.
After graduation, I started working in an office while simultaneously pursuing a master’s degree. In Türkiye, a bachelor’s degree is enough to practice as an architect, but once again, I wasn’t sure whether I wanted to stay in practice or move toward academia. Therefore, I did both.
It was tough to balance school and work, but it also created some room to breathe and reflect. That’s when the realization started forming: the professional architectural work experience was not what I was expecting. Creativity had very little space. Projects often started with Excel sheets and were then shaped by regulations and profit-driven decisions. There was very little room for creative freedom, and that was usually fulfilled by more senior architects.
I tried to imagine myself five or ten years later as a more senior member of the team, making these limited number of creative decisions, and I kept asking myself whether that would satisfy me. It wasn’t an easy question. I tried to answer that same question for three years. I worked in my city, Istanbul, and I also had an internship experience in Copenhagen. Despite these different opportunities, my creative needs remained unmet.
When 2020 came with the pandemic, I finally decided I had had enough. I made the decision to change my career path. I wasn’t entirely sure yet, but I wanted to move toward a more creative and fulfilling direction. I returned to what made me happy, started illustrating regularly on my iPad, and began applying mainly for illustration roles. I applied for entry-level roles, as I didn’t have relevant experience in this field. Many applications were rejected, and most didn’t take me seriously.
After a long list of rejections, I finally landed a few freelance projects. They made me incredibly happy. I felt that I was finally having the opportunity to work in the creative field I had been imagining. It wasn’t paying much, but it was what I wanted to do. I learned by doing, constantly improving through practice. I didn’t give up. I kept illustrating and later also started working on graphic design.
As time passed, freelance projects turned into full time-positions, and I realized I loved working in illustration and graphic design. It is a field full of opportunities for creatives who enjoy building an entire narrative behind the visualization. It sits on a very fine line between creativity and communication.
While doing all of this, I realized this was what I had dreamed of and what I truly wanted to do. I finally let go of doubts or backup plans, a first in my life. That’s how I knew I was on the right track. It wasn’t easy to shape my path into what I wanted to do; there were many things that were unclear or out of my control. Still, it helped to know I felt motivated simply by knowing I needed to be doing this. I feel this process has been an integral part of who I am and what I do.
And that’s how I transitioned into illustration and graphic design, without letting a decision I made at an early age define the rest of my life. I did the best I could with what I knew at the time, and I continued to question, learn, and evolve, and I will continue to do so. This website and blog are part of that journey, as I continue building my practice as a designer and illustrator.
And if you’ve made it this far, thank you for reading this personal piece. I’ll be sharing more of my journey here.