Category: Practice Based Research

Reflective writing about the pieces I create or experiment with in studio during this MA, along with samples of sketchbooks and notebooks etc.

Just a thought — WIP

So here’s the thing. Creating art is a multi-step process. First, you have to stop imagining and start doing. You have to scale that wall of fear that exists between the perfect piece in your mind, versus the piece (often beyond control) that will appear on the canvas. Then, when you’ve gotten your material and your fear in hand, you need to demonstrate some patience. Yes, you have this urge to see how the final piece will look, but you know that the look you want can not be achieved until you wait for certain layers to dry. Finally, you …

Inside the peach there was a stone

Inspiration can come from the most random of sources! A few weeks ago I watched Alias Grace, the adaptation of Margaret Atwood’s novel. I was intrigued. I was mesmerized. I was moved. Because isn’t that what society does? The actions of women are taken and discussed and judged till the truth vanishes and all that remains is a woman pretending to be who you want her to be. The man interviewing her was severely flawed himself and yet society gave him the task of discovering whether this woman was flawed or not. Grace Marks became a sort of expert on …

Visual Journal, page 1

Ayla is 2 months old. Rayyan and Manahil are 4 and 5. My online art classes are picking up. My regular calligraphy painting orders are still flowing in. I’m discovering more and more about art in Jeddah and loving it. And most important of all, I am in the midst of MA fine art digital online through Camberwell College of Art. And even though I am relishing every minute of it and I feel soooo inspired by my colleagues and professors, not to mention the OODLES I end up learning every single time I speak with them, I’ve gotta say, …

Experiment #4: Mosaics with acrylics on canvas?

Making a pure mosaic was… exhausting. Was it because it was so time consuming? Was it because it was my first time ever and the fear of failure was gnawing away at me even as I worked? Was it because work isn’t work when you are doing what you love, and what I love is painting? All these questions rose restlessly in my head when I worked on the piece “I capture the desert”. At the end of that artwork I did feel a sense of triumph. I had trudged my way to completion and even though the piece was …

My new year resolution: Keep a visual journal!

Wow, I have been away from this blog quite a lot recently. But, I do have a very good excuse. I recall during my first tutorial I had only a very vague idea of what I was meant to be doing during the course of this MA, let alone being ready to formulate a project proposal! Now, however, I feel as though I have made significant headway. I’ve conquered my doubts and fears and am ploughing ahead; whether I will reach a productive resolution or not remains to be seen. So, yes, more posts on what I have been up …