Reem Missi had a remarkable journey that deserves to be recognized. Motivated by Nelson Mandela’s words: “I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul…”.
She made her decision joyfully to leave behind the fields of engineering and big corporations. And enter the world of children, art, and colors. Reem Missi, the founder of the “Artokids” club, is a place where talent is nurtured with love.
I am grateful for this exceptional opportunity to introduce myself through the “Uplifting Syrian Women” initiative. As a woman and a Syrian, I appreciate your kindness in giving me a space to share my story and my project with you. My name is Reem Yacoub Missi, and I have been living in Qatar with my family since 1982.
I have twin daughters who are nine years old. I studied civil engineering at Tishreen University in Latakia, Syria. Then, I worked in Qatar at Khatib and Alami Engineering Consulting Company. Later, I embarked on a journey in this vast and enjoyable world and specialized in project and risk management with private banks.
Art has always been my passion. I dreamed of incorporating it into my working life, no matter where I lived. Life has a way of surprising us with unexpected opportunities, and that’s what happened to me. I had to pause my work in engineering temporarily due to the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic. I decided to use this time to do something useful and enjoyable, and some of my friends asked me to teach their children how to draw online.
I was determined and enthusiastic to make my idea a reality. With the help of my brother, George Missi, who is an amazing graphic designer. He has a podcast about all kinds of arts, we created the visual identity of the club. We chose the name, logo, and all the visual designs for the social media platform, as well as the physical materials such as prints and boxes for drawing tools, advertisements, posters, etc.
I owe a lot to my parents and my family, who have supported me since childhood and continue to do so. They have always believed in our abilities and helped us develop our talents. They have also provided us with all the facilities to achieve our goals. This had a huge impact on our success and our passion for our work, whatever it is, in our respective fields.
I also appreciate the support of my husband, daughters, and friends in “Artokids Club”. They trusted me from day one. For over a year and a half, they have been attending my drawing classes for their children and other activities. I am also grateful for the trust of all my students and everyone who has interacted with the services offered by Artokids.
No matter what you do or where you are, there will always be some criticism of your work. But not everyone who disagrees with you is a hater of your success. For example, in my experience, I didn’t face much criticism. But rather some warnings to be prepared for the challenges and not to get sucked into them. I consider myself lucky and blessed by God to have this much love and attention.
My father instilled in us a love of art. He never guided our hands to draw or sculpt. But he let us watch him create his artwork with colors or clay. He always asked for our opinion on his artistic projects. Not only to take it into consideration, but also to create a meaningful dialogue that enriched our thinking, knowledge, and self-confidence.
Every member of my family paints, including my mother, brother, and sister. The dining table was not only a place to gather for meals, but also our own drawing studio, and still to this day. In short, we learned art as a way of life.
During my university years, I joined the Center for Fine Arts in Latakia where my father learned art before going to Turkey to get his degree in architecture. He shared with me many of his stories about the beginnings of his career in sculpture. That’s what made me aware of the fundamentals of art and how to practice it. My father is now an actual partner in “Artokids”. He assists me with all the preparations before the workshops as well as the art products that we offer.
The challenges are still big… and every time I make progress, new challenges emerge.
One of these challenges is time management, as the drawing classes in “Artokids” start in the evening. And as a mother, I am very attentive to my daughters’ studies. So this clash of schedules is a major challenge that puts me in a dilemma of “to be or not to be”. Should I keep up with the double effort of balancing my time or stop? Thank God, I was able to combine my motherhood and work in the best way possible for a year and a half.
The other challenge is expanding, which I still struggle with, but I believe that everything has its right time.
Artokids is a small project that is still growing and offering many services. The first one is teaching drawing to children and adults. A box of various drawing tools is provided at the start of registration. Also, we conduct art workshops for ladies, children, mothers, and children.
We participate in many events and activities in Qatar through Artokids, such as schools and celebrations. Also, we do drawing activities and also sell artistic products made by the whole family, including my daughters.
Everything you share with your child for the purpose of artistic, scientific, or cultural enrichment is a treasure in the depths of your soul, mind, and wisdom. When talent is polished with love… it will give back a lot.
To tell you the truth, as much as I love drawing, I also love writing. I have many thoughts that I hope to publish someday. My goal is to move towards achieving my biggest dream, which is to create a cultural club. There, I can bring the warmth and richness of my parents’ dining table, where we share the art and stories, to a wider audience. I want it to be a fun and safe space for women and families, where they can join and develop their culture and hobbies, such as writing, reading, drawing, sculpting, and much more.
I know that planning is the key to success, but I also believe in that power that slowly seeps into your soul and whispers to you that it’s time for a bigger leap. I will keep planning and living passionately and consciously every day and wait for that whisper.
Believe in yourselves, and learn from everything, big or small. Do not lose hope no matter how much time has passed, for time is just a number, but age is what we do and achieve. Look for successful models in your environment and learn from them. I have seen many models and many women who inspired me in my life, and my closest model is my mother who persisted in getting her university degree when I was a little girl, so she left me with my father in Qatar to go to Damascus to take her exams until she graduated.
I remember my sister, a mother of three studying at school and university, who attended the University of Fine Arts in Lebanon and received the distinction and the university president’s award.
I am thankful to God, to the family that he gave me, to the comrades, to the honorable models in my life, to the bad luck, to the resurrection that followed the fall, to the coming failure and the rise that will follow it. To the constant search for a life worth living, and to the experiences that helped me a lot to build new skills.
The quote that I always remember in my moments of fatigue is by Nelson Mandela: “It matters not how strait the gate, how charged with punishments the scroll, I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul.”
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