What’s in Their Bag is a recurring feature where The Daily’s Photo Desk takes a visual deep dive into the life of a person by unpacking their bag with them. We are discovering what ’Cats collect and carry with them. This week, we are spotlighting Matthew Smith and Mahmoud El-Eshmawi, two enterprising students on campus. You can contact the photo editor by emailing [email protected].
Communication sophomore Matthew Smith is pursuing the Management of Creative Industries Certificate.
Smith’s bag of choice is from Shaka Wear, a streetwear brand based in Los Angeles.
“(Shakawear) makes super baggy balloon pants, and I love wearing baggy jeans,” he said. “And I saw that they had a backpack that I think was free with an order, so I obviously had to get the bag.”
Smith said he always has some sort of hoodie in his bag.
Outside of class, Smith hosts a radio show called “Cereal Beats” at 10 p.m. on Mondays. He said he stores his “U.K. garage music” on a bright red flash drive he keeps in his bag.
Smith also co-founded a startup at Northwestern called JukeBox. It is an app that allows the user to “discover new music, rate songs and connect around music with your friends,” he said.
Smith said he founded the startup with a few friends on campus, and the app launched in April.
For the past few months, Smith has been carrying an old-school camcorder around campus, which he said was the most interesting item in his bag.
“I think it makes videos look really sick,” he said. “You get more of the vintage look, which is cool, and it’s much more intentional.”
SESP junior Mahmoud El-Eshmawi is studying Learning and Organizational Change with a minor in Business Institutions. Originally from Alexandria, Egypt, he said his cultural background inspires what he brings around campus.
El-Eshmawi’s bag pays tribute to his Egyptian heritage with embroidered images of “three pyramids, a camel and some traditional Egyptian folks,” he said.
He was given the bag after his family’s recent trip to Egypt.
“They know I love a good tote bag,” he said. “It has vibrant colors, and I just love the direct craftsmanship that gone into making it.”
The light blue shirt is El-Eshmawi’s uniform for his position as an intramural sports referee on campus.
El-Eshmawi carries many items that are typically seen in a college student’s bag. However, he recently started carrying around a water gun as part of the Muslim-cultural Students Association’s annual game of assassins.
“Assassins is one of those games I look forward to every year. It’s fun, it’s competitive and I’m getting ready,” he said.
He is also one of the co-presidents of MENA and the founder and president of the Muslim Business Student Association.
The Muslim Business Student Association provides Muslim students with mentorship and guidance on how to enter business fields.
El- Eshmawi wears jewelry daily.
An item El-Eshmawi said he can’t live without is his rings.
“I feel damn near naked if I don’t have my rings on,” El-Eshmawi said. He added that he fidgets with his rings as a form of stress relief.
Folded neatly into his tote, El-Eshmawi carries a blanket that features a traditional Egyptian Khayamia pattern.
The blanket is typically used as a tablecloth during Ramadan. However, El-Eshmawi uses it for picnics on the Lakefill.
“I carry my digicam just in case I want to take some sort of cool photo, or I see some aesthetic scene I want to capture,” El-Eshmawi said.
Like Smith, El-Eshmawi brings a camera with him around campus, which he protects by storing it in a purple bag.
“I’m that overly involved guy on campus. I don’t know how to explain it, but I really try to and do as much as possible,” said El-Eshmawi.
Email: [email protected]
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— Student artist Jared Perlmutter explores passion for music at NU
— McSA hosts annual Eid al-Fitr banquet to celebrate end of Ramadan
