I used Graphic Design to teach myself Hebrew. Now, 18k+ people are learning with me.
A few years ago, I created @hebrewlesson, an Instagram account made to teach Hebrew. I use my design skills to teach my followers useful vocabulary and celebrate Jewish culture. The catch is, I am not a native Hebrew speaker.
I grew up in a Jewish home in Venezuela, so I'm lucky to be part of two cultures. Setting aside Venezuela's doomed political and economic downfall, I have precious memories from my upbringing. I ate arepas most mornings and swam in the Caribbean almost every weekend. I enjoyed the unmatched flavor of Venezuelan coffee and the innate warmth and hospitality of its people. Parallel to that, Jewish culture was and continues to be a big part of my life.
Venezuela was one in the handful of countries that opened its doors to Jews after WWII. Jews prospered in Venezuela, besides a few instances, the Jewish community seldom encountered antisemitism at large. That's the reason why my Polish/German/Rumanian family migrated to South America. I believe that being a small community in a catholic country puts some pressure on Diaspora Jews to maintain Jewish traditions. It's true in my case. Yes, I grew up eating arepas, but I also grew up eating gefilte fish, fasting in Yom Kippur, lighting the candles on Chanukkah, and counting the days to Shabbat Friday Dinner every week.
I went to a Jewish school in Venezuela, and most of my classmates were also descendants of Jews who suffered first hand from persecution and the terrible acts from The Holocaust. I remember many of my classmates sharing the awful stories of their grandparents, and what they had to endure and witness to survive. In our last year of high school, my school took my class on a trip to Poland and Israel. We visited the existing concentration camps. We marched with Israeli flags tied as capes inside the walls of Auschwitz and Dachau. Once we left Poland and landed in Israel, I knew I wanted to learn Hebrew. Fluently. I love Venezuela, but I never experienced a sense of belonging as strong as I did while in Israel, and I still do today. I don't consider myself a religious nor observant jew, but I cannot deny the spiritual connection I have to the Land of Israel. I know this to be true for many Jews from all walks of life, and I found this out by opening an Instagram account.
Since that high school trip, I have carried this sentiment for a long time in my heart: I wanted to learn Hebrew fluently. When I started learning about graphic design in college, I began to make visual images to teach myself words. I made hundreds of these little graphics. I would send some to my friends, some to my family until I was encouraged to publish them on social media.
Flash-forward to this present moment, I have 18,000 people tuning in to my weekly Instagram Hebrew quizzes. I have met Jews and people who connect to Judaism from all over the world, like Taiwan, India, Indonesia, Portugal, Turkey, Guatemala, Sweden, and many more! With the power of graphic design, I am actively teaching Hebrew online and celebrating Jewish culture with thousands of people daily.
Besides molding beautiful graphics, playing with color and hierarchy, graphic design is a communication tool that is as powerful as its message. And I can prove that first had. I would have never gained such a beautiful community without it.
Follow me @hebrewlesson