Thursday, December 18, 2014

My Touch

From a distance, you may have made out this art piece to be a simple image of a fingerprint, but as you look closer you will notice that the fingerprint is created from sentences, phrases, quotes and words. This piece that I created over the course of two weeks is entitled “My Touch” for many reasons. While searching for things to paint or draw, we often look around the room or outside at nature for inspiration. For this art piece, I realized that art can also be seen within. We are walking and talking pieces of art. And although we are all different, we are all the same in that we are all human. Your hand looks like mine, your fingers look like mine, but your fingerprint and “your touch” are what make you unique. There is beauty in realizing that just because we are different, does not mean we are not the same. Our differences unite us rather than separate us, and our uniqueness only strengthens us.

Many of the quotes you will find in the fingerprint are ones that have touched me either intellectually or spiritually. Together, my art piece is like a mirror. It not only mirrors my physical fingerprint, as I actually used my real fingerprint as the blueprint, but it also mirrors the things I identify with. We are all comprised of many things that make us whole. In this sense, the many words on the page come together to represent and reflect pieces of myself. Like an onion, you can travel through the image in different levels. First you can see the fingerprint image, then the distinct lines, and then the many phrases that make it up. Being a representational image painted with media ink, I was really able to experiment and finally get the perfect interplay of words and overall image. My fingerprint is my story and so is yours. It tells of your experiences, where you've been, what you've touched, and who you are. So take a second and look at your fingerprint, no one else in the world is like you. So leave your touch.

Tuesday, August 26, 2014

Real Tears of Joy

Tears streamed down his face as he slipped on the new pair of shoes he was handed. One foot in his old, torn shoe and one foot now in a new, black and shiny dress shoe. I had never seen tears of joy so real before. I looked at his old tattered shoe he was still wearing on his left foot—ripped at the edges with mud on the sides. I could tell they had been through so much. I could tell he had been through so much. How I wished I could be in his shoes instead of only being able to hand him new ones. How I wished I could fill the emptiness in his soul as he placed the soles of his feet into their new home. His home, though, he can’t call it a home anymore. He is a Syrian refugee now living in Turkey. I had the honor of teaching children like him during the summer this year. I noticed though that his tears were not filled with the woes of past misfortunes. They were filled with hope for a new journey. And he did not need more than one pair for that. I learned a lot from this boy. True blessings are not the materialistic things we adorn, but the feelings of gratitude that touch our hearts when we remember how much we have been given. Walk a mile in someone else’s shoes. Count your blessings. Clichés that become so real when you see real tears of joy.
In Nizip, Turkey Summer Camp for Syrian Refugees

Sunday, February 9, 2014

Light Upon Light

Light upon Light

No corner of the cosmos existing except with His light that illuminates
Closer to man than his jugular vein
Guiding him to a path away from the darkness and away from the pain
Light Upon Light
Our Creator exists eternally
His illumination, from the Infinite, perpetually flowing
His Essence infuses the universe with guidance
Showing man the correct path, living a life of true balance
Light Upon Light
Like nothing in all the universe
Allah’s guidance reaches the hearts of true believers
His eternal radiance polishing the mind and the soul
promising mankind a Paradise of bliss and much much more
To guide us along the way
He gave us the Quran here to stay
Purifying our souls and cleansing them
like a plant that grows from seed to stem
Blossoming out of the soil, widening the heart
Splitting darkness and light, far apart.
A gift from the Creator, up above
Showing Mercy, forgiveness, and beautiful love
A healer of pain, a book to cheer hearts
The book that feels the tears in your eyes
and testifies of your readings to the Most High
Food for the mind
its words so intelligent and so wise
A jewel and a treasure brought down from the skies
Revealed to our Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him
A sacred treasure, a luminating jem.
Our source of guidance to the only source of Light
Our friend until the end, when no one else is in sight.
Except our Beloved Creator, may we be worthy of this sight.
Nuroun 3ala Nour.
Light Upon Light.

“O Allah we ask You from You of Your most illuminating Light, to grant us this most beautiful delight”
Ameen.