I ran a poll on Instagram and asked you what you want to read about in these blog posts. One of the questions I got was, "what inspires you as an artist?"
Growing up, I was always drawn to art but I never had much direction or access to explore different mediums. When I got to college, I took advantage of the art program at the University of Iowa and experimented with every medium I could get my hands on. I worked with clay, paint, charcoal/graphite, pen/ink, plaster sculpting, woodworking, lithography, and relief printing.
Clay became an immediate obsession, with charcoal coming in at a close second. While I still enjoy most mediums depending on my mood, I channel the earth whenever I can, and feeling clay spin between my hands is the closest I've ever come to a clear mind. All my parts quiet down and allow me to breathe deep and center myself as the clay centers on my spinning wheel. It rarely lasts more than a few moments, but I'm getting better at slowing down and finding peace in the process.
When I say I channel the earth, I mean our natural world. For as long as I can remember, I have had my issues with the human world; I could never relate to things my friends and family deemed important, like social hierarchies and expectations. I still struggle with society and do my best to survive in this world we've created.
Especially as a Palestinian, I have a hard time accepting society's priorities. As George Soros once wrote, "power prevails and law legitimizes what prevails." That statement cuts deep for me, and I find it difficult to see society through a different lens when time and time again it feels like people prove that power and greed are all that matter. We have the intelligence and capital to truly change this world for the better but we continue to telescope and focus on individual gains.
I try my best not to dive deep into my hatred of society and instead focus on all the good community can bring. And so, I spend as much time as I can in nature and with people who share similar beliefs and priorities, and I breathe deep to ground myself. I have stayed in Colorado for the incredible access it provides to nature and I immerse myself in the trees and connect with as many animals as I can. The natural world can be harsh, but it is not malicious, and it helps me see that to appreciate all the positive we need to accept and process the negative. I work on my art and focus on all the natural beauty our wonderful and terrifying universe has to offer.
I want to reference an Instagram post I wrote a couple of months ago:
"As the human world overwhelms me, my instincts scream at me to flee society and live out my days in the forest...There’s a happy medium I try to find so for now I live with humans like a proper community member, and I connect with the earth through my art while enjoying moments in the wild when I can. I listen to music that grounds me and I breathe deep to keep our natural world close to me even when I’m not close to it."
When the covid pandemic hit, I found solace in long solo mountain drives. On one particularly peaceful afternoon, I parked my Jeep along a dirt path and stepped out to enjoy the aspens. A few minutes later, a group of sheep appeared through a bend in the road and hung out with me for a short while. I snapped some photos and waited for them to go on their way before I went on my way. Find them in the image above.
I appreciate the balance our natural world holds and I continue to learn and grow by taking as much inspiration as mother nature is willing to offer. I am thankful for those moments when I can harmoniously exist with the wild.
M