My Story
ARTIST STATEMENT
Art is sacred to me and my artworks are derived from my imagination, fantasies, ideas and real-life experiences. I reveal the inner thoughts that are often unspoken, which could be magical, adventurous, sensual, exhilarating and sometimes tragic.
Years of unspoken words...
The Naked Truth
I still remember at the age of 8 when my class teacher hung up one of my artwork in the classroom (it was a collage of a white bird). Another teacher passed by and said, “She could not have made that. It must be her mother”. My class teacher replied, “No, she did that herself”. Oh, how I love art class!
Since then, I would enter various art competitions and usually win something. I didn’t have much growing up, but these were some of my happiest childhood memories.
My family had always been in financial difficulties, and so at 16, I started working after school till 5 months before my big exam the following year. It might not seem much, but working as a sales promoter taught me a lot about people and life, and I am thankful for that experience.
Before school ended, my art teacher gave me pointers on what to major in and which local art scenes to follow. It all sounded so exciting. So when I got my exam results, I was sure I was going to take up arts, but then my parents (who just wanted the best for me) thought there was no future in arts. We had a chat about it, and I agreed with them. So I instead applied for TESL and Accounting and received scholarships for both – one for a university in the UK, and another at a local university.
I couldn’t imagine myself doing either, so I turned both offers down. I gave all the excuses in the world because I guess the heart wants what it wants, and there was nothing my parents could do about it.
When you turn down 2 scholarships, it was unlikely that you’ll be offered another. So I went and got a full-time job and looked out for art classes to study part-time. Unfortunately, with a low paying job, there was no way I could afford the art classes the colleges were offering. I ended up taking night classes later to do a 2-year diploma in computer programming.
Throughout the years, I’ve worked in real estate, in corporate sales and even ran several of my own businesses. Running a business especially was never easy, but I will admit, I do enjoy it.
You can say that life has taken me on a different path, and it has been a roller coaster ride. I didn’t get much time to draw, paint or create any kind of art for years. It hurts inside, and so I tell myself “I’ll do it someday when the time is right”. However, that someday never came for so many reasons. The hard truth is, the longer I waited, the harder it was to take that step. And in my case, it took me more than 20 years.
I realized then that there is never a good time. It’s just time. So I picked up my brush and started to paint again. I might not have gone to art school or had any proper training, but I know that this is my true passion, and it is what I’m born to do. Art is sacred to me, and so I give my all when I create them. I spent years visualising and even dreaming of art creations in my mind that are just bursting to be materialized. With that, I hope to bring joy and happiness to the world through my artworks and inspire others to follow their dreams too.
Lina Ali