Palestinian artist Ataf Al-Nujaili draws a painting at an atelier in the southern Gaza Strip town of Khan Younis, Jan. 21, 2020. (Xinhua/Khaled Omar)
With growing unemployment in the West Bank, the 24-year-old Palestinian woman, a finance major during her college years, is now tapping her marvellous drawing talent to earn a living.
RAMALLAH, Feb. 23 (Xinhua) -- At a table in one of the cafes in the West Bank city of Ramallah, Heyam Sohweil, a 24-year-old Palestinian woman, was using a pencil to sketch the face of a customer who paid her to do so.
Sohweil graduated as a finance major two years ago, but she eventually decided to live off her drawing talent after failing to find a job with the growing unemployment amid the difficult economic and political situation in the West Bank.
According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the unemployment rates in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip have grown to 21 percent among men and 38 percent among women.
Palestinian artist Ataf Al-Nujaili draws a painting at an atelier in the southern Gaza Strip town of Khan Younis, on Jan. 21, 2020. (Xinhua/Khaled Omar)
"I always like to challenge the hard circumstances and break the traditional rules of our society," Sohweil told Xinhua, as she finished a sketch in charcoal on an off-white piece of hard paper for the young man sitting in front of her in the cafe.
"Many of my classmates in college decided to stay home after graduation, while others found jobs not related to what they studied. But I decided to use my drawing talent to make a living," she said.
Sohweil had discovered her drawing talent even as a child because she was always faster than her schoolmates in painting. The Palestinian woman used to draw the faces of celebrities or any face she picked up from the internet.
"After I became professional in drawing people's faces in both charcoal and oil painting, I noticed that people liked my drawings, so I decided to use my drawing talent to earn a living," she noted.
Palestinian artist Ataf Al-Nujaili displays one of her paintings at an atelier in the southern Gaza Strip town of Khan Younis, on Jan. 21, 2020. (Xinhua/Khaled Omar)
Despite having no atelier, Sohweil is equipped with all types of drawing tools such as easels, brushes, crayons and pastels and able to do drawings in oil, water, charcoal and others.
The Palestinian woman usually communicates with her customers through her Facebook page. She said she can turn any idea of her customers into paintings.
"As soon as my customers explain what they exactly want or send me a small photo of what they need, I immediately draw it," Sohweil said proudly.
Palestinian artist Ataf Al-Nujaili draws a painting at an atelier in the southern Gaza Strip town of Khan Younis, on Jan. 21, 2020. (Photo by Khaled Omar/Xinhua)
Amman Zaqtan, a 31-year-old Palestinian documentary film director from Ramallah, told Xinhua that he likes Sohweil's drawings very much and sent his picture to her by phone, asking her to draw it in black and white.
A drawing by Sohweil is now priced at 50 U.S. dollars and more, depending on the materials she uses and the time she spends.
Sohweil has been dreaming of establishing an art academy, or at least a private atelier, for both children and adults to learn the basics of drawing and develop their talents. ■