Born in Lebanon, 1984, to Maroun, a sculptor & painter, and Samar, a poet, Samah El Hakim had the chance to grow in an environment filled with light, colors, words, and forms which deeply affected his main character traits and transformed him into what he has become today: an aspiring artist who is pragmatic while being a dreamer, visionary with a sense of nostalgia, loves a good laugh -especially when he's causing it- a believer in the power of Love.
He is a graphic designer and visual artist who is also co-founder and managing director
of kook creative studio.
of kook creative studio.
His visual prose works are guided by three main traits: wit, spontaneity, and simplicity.
They often emanate positive messages that reflect his deep belief of living life to the fullest, daily, following one rule: being good.
They often emanate positive messages that reflect his deep belief of living life to the fullest, daily, following one rule: being good.
CAREER MILESTONES
2011-present | Co-founder / Managing Director | kook creative studio
My day "job" resides at the heart of kook creative studio, which has been an adventure ever since we decided to team up, Robert and I, back in 2011 to bounce back from a significant business failure.
We built a whole new system from scratch and most importantly we improved ourselves on many levels to get to where we are today: a dynamic, ever-evolving, passion-driven, and quality-oriented design studio with a forte for branding.
My main role is on the business development & management side as I seek new opportunities no matter their nature and filter them in order to get the best projects for our team to work on. I clearly define a client's needs in order to conceive a creative brief that would get efficient results while also managing the various projects.
We built a whole new system from scratch and most importantly we improved ourselves on many levels to get to where we are today: a dynamic, ever-evolving, passion-driven, and quality-oriented design studio with a forte for branding.
My main role is on the business development & management side as I seek new opportunities no matter their nature and filter them in order to get the best projects for our team to work on. I clearly define a client's needs in order to conceive a creative brief that would get efficient results while also managing the various projects.
2014-2020 | Instructor | Lebanese University
A refreshing and inspiring experience that continues to this date as I get to guide 3rd-year and Master's students while infusing them with the passion I have for graphic design and give them the best of my daily professional career.
2009-2020 | Instructor | USEK
My first experience in teaching started at the university I graduated from. I started off as an assistant instructor, only to move within 3 years to giving the main design course for 3rd-year students.
It is quite an enriching experience that has made me many creative friends along the years.
It is quite an enriching experience that has made me many creative friends along the years.
2015-2017 | Co-founder / Creative Director | The Tipplers
I had the chance to be part of the team who created a novel bar-catering experience for all kinds of events in Lebanon. The fun project grew to become a huge success as it continues its growth on the national level.
2013- 2018 | Co-founder | Uf Concepts
As part of my belief in Lebanon and the need for young, dynamic, and creatively-driven youth to be rooted in it, in 2013 I founded Uf Concepts with Wajid El Hitti, Samar Maalouf & Nicola El Hakim, a one-stop boutique agency for everything outstanding for the digital world and its experiences.
Among the amazing projects we achieved for commercial or corporate clients, an essential fun part we achieved was the initiative Uf Chou Laziz, which aimed at creating positively-driven social experiments that would somehow do some good in our society.
Another achievement was organizing for the first time in Lebanon and the Middle East, the Walk A Mile In Her Shoes event on International Women's Day in 2015.
Among the amazing projects we achieved for commercial or corporate clients, an essential fun part we achieved was the initiative Uf Chou Laziz, which aimed at creating positively-driven social experiments that would somehow do some good in our society.
Another achievement was organizing for the first time in Lebanon and the Middle East, the Walk A Mile In Her Shoes event on International Women's Day in 2015.
2010-2014 | Municipal Council Member, Mazraat Yachouh
An experience on the social/civic side during which I achieved several local development project studies such as street addressing, GIS & municipal building architectural competition.
However, the studies remained so due to the resistance that existed within the non-homogeneous council which eventually led me to resign officially from my position.
However, the studies remained so due to the resistance that existed within the non-homogeneous council which eventually led me to resign officially from my position.
2010-2013 | Co-writer | toom extra
An online blog that I established with two of my friends, focused mainly on Lebanese culture, life, and events. We tried to write as positive as we could in all matters in a way to find the best of Lebanon in the saddest/harshest situations. We collaborated with local artists and fellow bloggers to produce two books of our best writings.
2008-2012 | Instructor | UPA
2007-2010 | Co-founder / Designer | Tinkle
My first attempt in the professional world was founding Tinkle, an agency that provided creative services and digital printing services. The ambitious project was a bit too much for us to handle with our lack of experience and short-term vision. I could say that this project made me learn the hard way.
2006-2015 | Writer | fi ballouta
My personal blog where I mainly wrote about experiences that occurred to me over the lapse of 10 years and ended in publishing a selection of the best writings compiled in "Nut Ephemera" book in 2017.
2002-2007 | MA Graphic Design | USEK