Chris Beauchamp is a Canadian writer, editor, graphic designer and
photographer with a passion for travel and a love for challenging projects.
Born in Ft. Saskatchewan, Alberta about three decades ago, I can’t deny my roots as a prairie boy, raised in the cities, plains and mountains of western Canada. As a young man, I worked several jobs in the trades, building and operating the industrial infrastructure that sustains Alberta and northern B.C. as Canada’s economic powerhouse: as a labourer and pipe fitter’s helper on oil and gas pipeline and facility construction, a skilled labourer in a welding shop, and as a plant operator in a cobalt refining operation. Despite offers of apprenticeship in all of these positions, I eventually figured out that I wanted to go back to school.
Seeking a change of scenery, I relocated to attend the University of Calgary, where I became heavily involved in student journalism. I worked as a contributor at the U of C Gauntlet, becoming news editor and eventually editor-in-chief of the paper. I also hosted a weekly campus news and events program for almost 3 years on CJSW 90.9 FM. I also met Laura at the U of C, over beers in the campus bar. We liked each other immediately, and went on to live and work together in a number of student houses and Joe-jobs as we finished up our studies.
After completing my undergraduate degree in political science and history, I moved into the Real World, accepting a job as a graphic designer and editor for a world-wide engineering company. For 18 months, I was responsible for contributing to and coordinating major oil and gas business proposals out of a couple of non-descript office buildings in downtown Calgary. While I did learn a ton from my time there (and was able to pay off some daunting student loans), I also learned that clicking a mouse from the inside of a cubicle is not for me. On the plus side, I married my best friend in September 2008.
So, freshly debt-free and presented with the opportunity to pick up and do something drastically different, Laura and I packed up our household, selling and giving away truckloads of accumulated belongings. We bought one-way tickets to Istanbul, Turkey, with a loose plan to make our way across the classic silk road to Southeast Asia and find English-teaching jobs in Thailand.
Although neither of us are currently employed, I have been able to keep my freelance business alive while on the road, doing projects for several clients, both old and new. My freelance creative work includes professional photography, communications consulting, art direction, project management and design for print and web. If you like what you’ve seen on this site, please contact me to discuss how my abilities can assist you with your own print or web design projects.
Anyway, that’s me.