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About me

Nightmares On Wax

You Wish

Side A
0:003:29
Portrait of Sara Shahnoosh

I've always been the person who notices the small details, which pulled me toward design, and who can't help asking why, which pulled me toward psychology.

Those two threads still define how I work: I use research and behavioral psychology to make decisions for the user, not just for the interface.

Outside of screens

I'm a fixer

Broken or forgotten things usually end up as something new.

A blue Togo sofa with worn seams patched in old denim
Togo, patched from old jeans

1 of 3: Togo, patched from old jeans

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Lace showing through a row of rounded slots in a pale blue metal panel
Layered mountain silhouettes in soft dusk light
Swirling gray and white marble
Weathered green door panels edged with rows of studs
A white stairwell with red pipes running along the ceiling
A wall of terracotta grid cubbies
A railing's shadow zigzagging down concrete steps

I love making lists and collecting patterns

I collect patterns wherever I go, and keep Google Maps lists for my travels.

I'm a chronic nostalgic

I run a foundation in my sister's name, caring for her art on paper and on screen.

The finished installation in a gallery: a black-and-white striped chair with pink fringe and a mannequin head on a furry stool, on a grass-covered platform on wheels, in front of a pink wall with a framed sky painting.
Colored-pencil sketch in a spiral sketchbook: a striped chair and a mannequin head on a stool, on a grass-covered platform on wheels, in a pink room. Labeled "Vanity".
Vanity, from sketch to installation

Experience

Knowunity2024–2026Product Designer0→1 design and research
28 Scott2023–2024Art DirectionWebsite, branding, social media and asset design
Headspace2023UX & StrategyUX strategy for content discoverability
Center for Digital Experiences, Pratt2021–2023UX ConsultantContract research and design studio within Pratt
OGA Wellness2022Founding DesignerResearch and design for the proof of concept for funding rounds
Anthropologie2020Decor DesignerSeasonal decor designs, from production to installation
CALM Lab, UC Berkeley2018–2019Research AssistantStudying how emotion and impulsivity relate to mental health

Education

Pratt Institute2023M.S. Information Experience Design
UC Berkeley2019B.A. Psychology
Full resume →