As a Somali-American painter and multidisciplinary artist whose work moves between painting, portraiture, garments, and film. My practice is rooted in emotion, I draw inspiration from human connection.
My work grows out of time spent within the communities I paint, I spend time listening, observing, and building real relationships before I ever pick up a brush.
I don't paint on people's behalf, I often remind myself; I paint in collaboration with them, using the canvas to make visible what too often goes unseen or unspoken. .
I find a story, sit inside it long enough to understand it, and shape it into something that can finally be seen.
Among my other works, "Faces of Lake Street" is one of those projects where my core practice really comes to life.