Laila Shawa was born in Gaza, Palestine, and studied at the School of Art Leonardo Da’Vinci, Cairo, Egypt. She received her B.A. in fine arts with honors from Academia de Belle Arte, Rome, Italy. Also studying at Academia St. Giaccomo in Rome, she earned a diploma in Plastic & Decorative Arts.

 

She worked as supervisor for Arts & Crafts Education with UNRWA in the Gaza Strip while at the same time lecturing on Art Education for children with UNESCO Institute of Education. From 1977-1988, she worked with the Saad Mohaffel Chartered Architects practice on the building of the Cultural Center and executed the stained glass windows for the project, after which she moved to London and resumed work as a full time artist exploring various techniques and mediums.