Yara Berjawi

Late nights call for me. They rarely did that recently. The sandman had always won, weighing my eyes heavy with bags of sand, captivating me to his dream land. Late nights rarely call me to a place where the music is intense, the silence is indispensable, the nowness, inexplicable.

The pandemic brought winds of change, of awareness and contemplation, of new friendships and reincarnated ones. The pandemic woke me up in ways that I had missed.

A late night called upon me tonight where I rekindled a left artwork, and I rid myself of rules and regulations which I, myself, had imposed. And I let my pencil draw, in its beautiful imperfections, its lack of permanence, its opportunities.

The most beautiful version of yourself is the honest one, in all its rawness. Tonight I am a version sharing a piece with smudges, rough strokes, incomplete lines. I share it with its message. This isn’t a revival, it’s just an action. It isn’t a step towards bringing anything specific back, it’s merely an act of being. Me. Being myself, someone who draws, who writes, who shares herself with the outer world.

Here I am.

I recently had the chance to illustrate a personal story on a guitar and it was one of the most interesting projects I've done. The story and the full artwork will be up on my website soon and I'll share all the details.

When you've recently made the decision to dedicate more time to create things, be it a drawing, music, writing, or any other form, it's so important to allow yourself the time to explore.

I've created artworks with thin lines, no filling, bulky fillings, colors and so on, and I'm still a long way from being able to define my style 100%. The key is to create more and assess the potential of a style and the fulfillment you get from it.

A small reminder: make sure you enjoy the process throughout no matter how weird it gets ✌️

Cheers,
Yara

Happy International Women's Day!

I'm so happy to be taking part in this celebration this year. I am exhibiting my work at Haley's Comet Breakfastclub to remind all you women out there to express yourselves whichever way you want! (Will share pics soon 📸)

Having moved to The Netherlands a year ago, I realized how pressured women are in Lebanon to blend in society. It really shaped the way I treat my personal style, hesitating to look too different...

Women in The Netherlands are more free to express themselves without being judged. I feel so much at ease knowing that stereotypes are not glorified and self expression is encouraged.

I'm writing this to remind you that no one should dictate how you dress or what color you should paint your hair. Your style does not define your ability to succeed in whichever field you are 🖤

Be strong, be unique, be yourself. Loving yourself will bring you peace, and it makes you even more beautiful!

Much love,
Yara xx

It took me time to accept that planning should be a part of the illustration process. Many of my artworks are impulsive and the result is always intriguing for myself and others (that's what you've told me!)

For International Women's Day, I'm creating a series of portraits and, for that, discipline is needed. Here's a simple guide that I am using, details will be filled as I go 🙂 I'll be revealing all the series after my exhibition at next weekend 🙌🏻

One love xx
Yara

Remember the announcement of some new products? Here's one of em! "Waterfalls" is a fresh design that combines striking yellow with the soothing shades of blue. 🌊☀️🌅 Available on hard covers or snap ones for both iPhones and Samsung phones on our shop.

https://rdbl.co/2SSDfm2

Proud to announce the launch of a new collection: Lollipops! This idea came to me when I realized how there are little things that bring joy, and the more the merrier! Here's the pattern on our favorite summer dresses. The pattern is also available on pillows, phone and laptop covers, mugs, tote bags and others ☺️

Shop here: http://bit.do/eJpZX

📸: Testshot

In celebration of the international storytelling festival in Amsterdam, I created a mural at The Student Hotel that portrays how ideas are developed.

- Our eyes are a window to the world, through which we discover new things that strike us like an arrow and trigger all sorts of beautiful mental journeys. I believe we merge all new input with our previous experiences, our personality, our views of the world, and we go on to form our own ideas.

The mural will be completed next week, these are photos from the work-in-progress.

Thank you The Student Hotel for the opportunity! Thank you Pixel8 Productions and Testshot for capturing my very first mural is such a beautiful way. Thank you family and friends for all your support. You're too many to count and I love you all so much!

New piece 🙌🏻 work-in-progress Humanoid.

Here's Mr Astronaut, ready to tell you all about his journey in our vast space. He's a little shy, always wearing his helmet, hiding in his space suit. But he's friendly, nonetheless.

@ The Hague, Netherlands

Here's how I define the creative process, a cycle of exploration, creation, expression and transformation. The artwork is based on glyphs. Scroll through the carousel to see what each symbol means.

Get the artwork on my shop, link in bio ⚡

@ The Hague, Netherlands

On Fridays, we take a break from all the life chores and focus on work 😎 this is a detail shot from a new commission!

When the weekend is just around the corner I like to make sure I get as much work done as possible so I don't drag too many big bags for the Monday after. It's a little trick I taught myself as self-employed, and it's working wonders for my mood as it limits the stress that comes with the Monday to-do list. Got any other learnings you'd like to share? below 😗

October isn't all about for me. It's also a preparation month for a very big opportunity that I will be experiencing y next month! I'll be doing a full wall mural at The Student Hotel in Amsterdam West. This a close-up from the piece which I'm super excited about 😄

There's a whole story behind it which I'll be sharing with the big reveal 🙌

Creating new artworks for my shop! This one is a close-up from a waterfall. For you who are not familiar, RedBubble is an independent artist aggregator where artists submit their work, and the website handles all the production process. I make a profit margin on each sale from my shop and the artwork can be printed on a whole bunch of products such as tshirts, posters, stickers, mugs, laptop sleeves, phone covers, and even pillows, duvet covers and towels!

The link to my shop is in my bio 😊

The Odd One
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Day 2.

The illustration I created for today* is about energy. The core represents an individual or person and the surrounding portrays energy stimuli (role models, friends, celebrities, music, anything..really). They all inject you with emotions and thoughts that get you, in turn, to emit other stimuli and energy boosts to the world, to others. It's about the connections we make and how they bloom into beautiful things.

*Today marks the first "anniversary" of my art page, and this is a representation of how I feel about it. A year ago, I mustered up some courage and decided to put my work out there after thousands of hours of watching others do it. I realize now it was the best decision because it snowballed into me working on an illustration portfolio, a website (in process) and an ongoing pursuit of learning and putting myself out there. It got me to meet new people which got me illustration projects, and I'm a not even an art/design graduate! Today is a celebration of all the people who inspire othets to BE MORE, to produce more, to explore and to enjoy the power of their mind. Thank you for everyone who's been sending me messages of support and encouragement to continue. You guys are so awesome 🖤

In other news, I am now selling products of a little artwork I put together a while back of my favorite Marvel character, Iron Man. It's available in dark shades on my webshop.


Marvel Marvel Studios .official Robert Downey Jr 😍

Life.

Share if you relate -

Music is one of the core elements I need when I'm illustrating. I can rarely get immersed in my head without it. Here's an album that I consider a "good ol' friend". The way the sound echoes in those sessions is just mesmerizing.
(It's also a good excuse to wear headphones at the office on a Monday- )

In Rainbows: From The Basement - Radiohead The VH1 Broadcast of Radiohead's live performance at The Hospital Club's TV Studio in London's Covent Garden, 3 May 2008, featuring tracks from In Rainbows a...

Today, I did something for the first time. I've been having a lot of first times recently. It's really amazing how much growth you can achieve when you decide you want to, but more importantly, when you give yourself the time to do it. It's a luxury - I know, and I'm lucky to have it for now.

Today, I drew on a window. I used something I'm comfortable with, a remake of the female portrait, a creature with hair interwoven with a head piece. It felt quite familiar but also a little scary to draw on a new surface. But I loved every minute of it 🖤 Here's to "Creatures Of The Night", the very first piece of the Through The Glass series in my home studio :)

Stay-in or hang out? I'm team stay-in big time, guess that's why I love having colorful beddings to snuggle in ❤️ for a very limited time, all beddings are 30% off on my Society6 shop! https://society6.com/yaraberjawi

We know you'll always need an extra cushion to brighten up your room or even your office couches! When is on sale, it's totally worth making a move! Make "Rising Phoenix" yours tonight using the promo code ART30NOW on my webshop. Promo is limited time only! Link in bio 🤗👯

Buying decorative items is usually a thing you tend to delay. But when is on sale, it's totally worth making a move! Make "Surfer Girl" yours tonight using the promo code ART30NOW on my webshop. Promo is limited time only! Link in bio 🤗👯

This commissioned piece was an open brief for a music room. It's a provocative piece about breaking through society's eyes and judgements. At certain times you have to fight back in an agressive way. Do you relate? 🤨

Here's to when Sasha Jurdi printed my design for me! 😊 It was an unfinished artwork and still is 😗😗 "Princess Lisbeth" was meant to be a warrior.