Online Illustration student sees her reportage art shared in nine languages by the BBC

"When people don't have a voice or strong access to media, it becomes the responsibility of journalists and illustrators to recreate their reality and share it with audiences in other countries," says current BA(Hons) Illustration (Online) student Faren Taghizadeh.

After growing up in Tehran, Iran, Faren moved to the UK to work as a journalist for BBC Persian, a role that heavily relies on UGC (user-generated content). "BBC Persian journalists are under pressure from the Iranian regime and cannot go there," Faren shared. "As anything that comes out of the country is precious, being a journalist without physical access to audiences means we rely on user-generated content, which can range from a single photo to a short eyewitness account.

"In these conditions, journalists often don't have enough visual material to tell stories and instead rely on reportage illustration and graphic design to recreate the atmosphere.

"Meanwhile, during the war between Israel, America, and Iran, I received the story of a single mother and her fear during an airstrike. This was not just one mother's story-many people share the same fear."

The story Faren received inspired her to create her illustrative series, A Mother's Fears Amid Tehran Air Strikes, a selection of illustrations that has gone on to be published by the BBC in nine languages across Instagram. "I wanted to visualise fear and show audiences what life really feels like under airstrikes," Faren said. "War news doesn't only come from politicians-people's lives are deeply affected. From internet blackouts that separate families across countries and create anxiety, to the sound of fighter jets flying very close to buildings in Tehran-residents live with constant fear and uncertainty. People don't know what will happen next-whether they will be targeted or if something will strike nearby.