Weeda Shoujah Hamdan
“You have not lived today until you have done something for someone who can never repay you.”
John Bunyan
My Story
Weeda Hamdan is a fine artist, graphic designer, and philanthropist born in Liberia to Lebanese parents. Exposed to a mix of cultures and traditions, Liberia, Spain, and Lebanon, throughout her childhood, Weeda's work reflects the complex texture of life as well as its richness.
She began drawing at 12 years old when sheltered in a bunker from raging wars in Lebanon. Her art gave her an escape from the trauma of many wars, loss, and displacement. Her talent was recognized and nurtured by family and teachers; she majored in graphic design and minored in Painting and Drawing at Lebanese American University, then co-founded her design agency at age 21, working with clients around the world.
However, her entrepreneurial drive did not eclipse her need to paint, and for many years, she continued to study her craft, taking night classes with her professor Helen Karam. In 2005, she pursued a Master's in Painting and Drawing at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco. She is currently enrolled in the University of Massachusetts Amherst in a multidisciplinary program where she designed her major: Creativity for Social Justice.
Weeda has called Texas home for over two decades. She shares life there with her husband and daughters. In 2011, when her daughters' Montessori school shut down, she decided to homeschool them after reading Dumbing us Down by John Taylor Gatto. Following learning assessment and avoiding a school environment, she selected eclectic, hands-on curricula with a strong influence from Rudolf Steiner's Anthroposophy. She wanted her daughters to develop a lifelong love for curiosity and global learning while traveling the world.
Combining her love for art, education, and children, She co-founded the nonprofit Education Unbound to offer holistic programs integrated with arts and creativity to advocate for minority and underserved students so they too can change their trajectory as she did hers.
Now, with Education Unbound, Weeda paints it forward in another way. She donates her paintings to the nonprofit so that 100% of proceeds from their purchase go to supporting the mission of better-educating students in rural and poor communities in enriched education.
You can view her work here.