Design Major Returns From World Travels

by Natalia Kirychuk, Public Relations Writer – October 28, 2016

Grad returns from three years of world travel to tell his story

A Cedarville University visual communication design graduate has traveled to every continent and more than 50 countries since his graduation in 2013, documenting the experience with a camera. Zach Murphy, who hails from Syracuse, New York, returned to campus on Thursday, Oct. 27, to display images from his travels and tell his story. 

In January 2015, Murphy embarked on the World Race, an 11-month mission trip across 11 countries. While he had been traveling steadily since his graduation in 2013, it was on this trip that Murphy started taking pictures of people and places with the purpose of publishing them in a book. 
“People are similar across the world,” said Murphy. “We have similar features; we greet each other the same way. We’re all made in the same image.”

Last year, Murphy published his first book, and he hopes to publish a second book, “Faces of Places: Beyond the Silk Road.” 

Murphy has worked for mission organizations, travel companies and even a portrait company in Australia. 

Murphy has had many interesting adventures, including riding a hot air balloon over cliff dwellings in Cappadocia and witnessing colorful houses and clothing in India, and he’s quick to acknowledge that Cedarville University prepared him to make the most of his many opportunities.

“It was the internship opportunities through Cedarville that allowed me to focus on both photography and design,” he said, “and the courses offered pushed me to look at other parts of the world and to experience new cultures. The photography minor especially allowed me to focus on something I loved.”

“As a student, Zach was a self-starter and consistently approached his project work with enthusiasm,” said Aaron Huffman, assistant professor of graphic design at Cedarville. “He successfully balanced his course work and his service as the student government association marketing director, and he was actively involved in the campus community. It is no surprise to me that he has approached his professional work with the same degree of dedication and determination.”

Murphy’s work can be viewed on his website.

Located in southwest Ohio, Cedarville University is an accredited, Christ-centered, Baptist institution with an enrollment of 3,760 undergraduate, graduate, and online students in more than 100 areas of study. Founded in 1887, Cedarville is recognized nationally for its authentic Christian community, rigorous academic programs, strong graduation and retention rates, accredited professional and health science offerings, and leading student satisfaction ratings. For more information about the University, visit www.cedarville.edu.