Smart Art - About Us
We are a team of women who want to inspire children to change the world through their love for the arts.
I’m Eman Abdelbakey, and I’m the founder of Smart Art. I have a sidekick by my side (don’t tell her I said that) who’s the co-owner and my best friend, Dina Aboul-Enein.
I started Smart Art in 2015 because I wanted to change the world and I wanted to do it through the future of this world; children. Ever since I was in kindergarten, I dreamed of becoming an artist, but fate had other plans for me.
I ended up studying something that I wasn’t all that excited about, but my journey never ended there and I continued to pursue my art education at every chance I got. My career took me on different paths and I ended up changing careers and fields more often than I changed my clothes. Alright it wasn’t that many, but it was certainly a lot for ten years.
Eventually I realized that I couldn’t keep running from my dream, so I quit everything I knew and took on the biggest challenge of my career, and life so far, and I created what I like to think of as a safe place for children to be who they want to be. A place where they are free to explore, make mistakes, learn about art and life through experiences and stories and, most importantly, have fun.
Meet our team
We wanted to offer engaging art lessons that were also easy for children to understand. Because of that, we spent time learning how children of different ages learn and build art skills. We invested in providing our instructors with training on how to teach art to children. We focus on progress and skill development. Our instructors are there to teach, not to do the work for the students. You won’t find what we do elsewhere because we focus on the students, not the perfect result.
Eman Abdelbakey
Founder and co-owner
My childhood dream was to start my own business in an art related field. I constantly dreamt about a career in the artworld, but instead ended up going to AUC‘s business school and working in Marketing and Sales. While my experiences taught me a lot, at age 31, I quit everything to start my own business, a dream I had since I was 6 years old.
Dina Aboul-Enien
Co-owner & Marketing Manager
I grew up with music being a big part of my life. I learned to play the piano at age of 4 and the guitar at age of 15. I also love dancing, painting, and calligraphy. I joined Smart Art in 2018 after meeting Eman in a kickboxing class in 2017, and we became best friends. I believe in the mission of Smart Art and want to help bring it to more children
Madonna Rafat
Senior Art Instructor & Content Creator
Hi, I’m Madonna. I love teaching. I love working with children, I learn a lot from them. Talking with my students, discussing art and helping them reach their goals is the best part of my job. I hold a teaching certificate from Notting Hill College and I have over 15 art teacher professional development hours. I have been teaching art to students of all ages since 2018.
Yasmine Elbassiouny
Business & Logistics Coordinator
Hi, I’m Yasmine ElBassiouny, a business and political science graduate. I specialize in organizing, planning and making people’s lives easier. That’s why I’ve been working as a business and executive assistant for most of my career. If you’ve contacted Smart Art, then we’ve already talked or even met. I love making your life easier when planning your child’s activities with us.
Aya Samir
Traditional & Digital Art Instructor
Hi there! My name is Aya. I have a bachelor of fine arts. minor in painting. I’m a traditional and digital artist and my goal is to inspire a lifelong love of art in my students. I hold an Annual Certificate in Child Protection and Safeguarding for Staff (International Schools). I have over 27 art teacher professional development hours. I have been teaching art to children since 2022.
Nada Khaled
Visual & Functional Art Instructor
I’m Nada Khaled, an art instructor at smart art. I graduated from the faculty of fine arts mural painting department. Art is my passion, I love to work with mosaics, glass, acrylic paint and pencils cause I love shading. I love making mixed media artworks cause I love using different types of material at the same time. Lately I started selling abstract paintings. Abstract makes me feel free using colors. So I love to teach people art to make them love it as I do. I have over 27 art teacher professional development hours.
Manal Ibrahim
Art Instructor
Hello, I’m Manal, a Visual artist, Muralist, and Art instructor.
I graduated from the Faculty of fine arts, Mural painting department. My passion is art and learning. I literally love all kinds of art. I love teaching children and keeping their minds open to all kinds of arts. I hold an Annual Certificate in Child Protection and Safeguarding for Staff (International Schools). I have over 3 art teacher professional development hours. I have been teaching art to children since 2021.
If you are looking for well rounded, comprehensive art classes. If you are looking for a safe, fun and engaging learning environment. If what you need is flexibility and art classes that don’t need hours of driving in Cairo traffic. If you want a place that takes care of everything for you with no extra costs or shopping trips. Then our art classes are the right place for your child!
Hey there! If you have any questions, please drop us an email or give us a call. We're always happy to hear from parents and love nothing more than helping out in any way we can.
JUST LET US KNOW WHAT YOU NEED, AND WE’LL BE HERE FOR YOU!