leisureland

bumper cars pattern . 2019

al nasr leisureland penguin card . 2019

disco scooter card . 2019

it's been awhile since my last post – things have been quite slow post ramadan, and i'm hiding indoors as the summer heat is officially upon us! there are some project announcements soon, but until then, i thought i'd share an old project which for some reason i did not share at the time they were produced! better late than never i guess...

the above illustrations were originally created in 2019 for rove hotels, a client i've made work for on multiple occasions thanks to the capsule arts team. the above were inspired by the retro graphics and signage found in dubai's iconic al nasr leisureland – a space that means a lot to those who grew up in dubai during the '80s and '90s. al nasr leisureland has stood the test of time and is still around to this day. visiting leisureland is like going through a time warp – it's glory days are long gone, but the magical nostalgia is still there.

if you pay a visit to rove at the park, you should be able to spot these adorning the property's walls. after five years, i must say i'm really happy with how they turned out. someone suggested i should make 'disco scooter' stickers – stay tuned...

from mountains to mangroves...

falcon . 2023

gazelle, mountains . 2023

gazelle, ghaf tees . 2023

camel, desert . 2023

camel, falcon, desert . 2023

oryx, oasis . 2023

oryx, palm trees . 2023

mangroves . 2023

at the end of last year, i worked on the illustrations above highlighting the fauna of the uae and their habitats for a project targeting young children and their parents. the aim was to teach children at an early age, with the help of their parents, about the various animals and landscapes found around the emirates through dynamic and fun illustrations.

in the end, my illustrations were not selected to move forward for the final project. even though it was disappointing to hear at first, i'm still very proud of these illustrations. it was a great exercise in understanding and defining an illustration style that would appeal to children. i think the illustrations are quite fun, cute and whimsical. but i guess there was still something missing in the end...

keeping this post short and sweet – i hope whoever sees these enjoy them as much as i did making them. word on the street is, a lot of people are digging the mangroves...! 

eid al fitr 2024

eid al fitr . 2024

eid al fitr scarf (sample) . 2024

eid al fitr scarf (sample) . 2024

eid al fitr scarf detail (sample) . 2024

here's another eid al fitr project, this time for shamal holding. alongside working on their ramadan greetings (see post here), i also had the opportunity to work on an eid al fitr artwork which was printed onto silk scarves and gifted to their vips. 

the artwork was inspired by the spirit of the season – observing the skies to commemorate the arrival of eid al fitr, motifs and patterns from islamic architecture, arts and design, and my personal love for textile traditions from the region. 

i'm really happy with how the final artwork turned out, including its application onto silk scarves – it feels very hermès-y! i haven't done much commercial textile projects due to the limitations of textile printing facilities in the uae. however, the final product was well printed and is the encouragement i needed to consider working on self initiated textile products.

if anyone reading this was gifted the final scarf, i hope you like it! once again, thank you shamal holding, as well as impact bbdo (who were the agency working behind the scenes on this campaign) for the opportunity to collaborate.

a magical eid...

eid al fitr (jameel) . 2024

 

eid al fitr for hayy jameel . 2024

eid al fitr for jameel arts centre . 2024

eid al fitr for art jameel . 2024

eid mubarak to everyone celebrating! may your festivities be filled with joy and love amongst family and loved ones. i'm truly thankful for all of life's blessings. for many around the world, that is not the case – please keep those going through troubling and difficult times in your thoughts and prayers.

i was invited to work on the eid greetings for hayy jameel, jameel arts centre and mother company art jameel. the inspiration behind the visuals was my recent textile piece for the jameel library commission titled 'in search of magic' (see previous post about the project here). a collection of magical symbols and patterns appear on all three greetings, and culminate together in the art jameel greeting. 

i'm so so happy with the end results – each greeting stands on its own as a unique design, but also complete each other as a trio! the greetings wouldn't be as magical as they are if it wasn't for dina al khatib, who helped with animating the final greetings. thanks dina!

keeping this post short and sweet – enjoy the eid break, and see you at the next post!

postcards for charity

mini mother of the house . 2024

mini dance distortion . 2024

on the 21st of march, capsule arts hosted 'postcards for compassion – charity art event', a post-iftar fundraiser for one night only at their headquarters, inviting 80+ artists to contribute original a5 sized art postcards, all priced at aed 100. full proceeds of sales would be donated to the emirates red crescent for the humanitarian aid in palestine. click here for more information about the event via capsule arts' web page.

i was happy to participate in the fundraiser with the two original artworks you see above, made with humble coloured ballpoint pens and fluorescent markers. i'm even happier to announce that both artworks were sold. i arrived early at the fundraiser with hopes of taking a few photographs of my works on display, but they were already gone. as annoyed as i was for not managing to get any photographs, i was delighted to find out that someone liked my works and purchased them. to whoever got my artworks – thank you and i hope my little postcards find happy homes! and may our small contributions help those that are currently in need.

ending this short post with a thank you to capsule arts for the invitation to participate. to more fundraisers in the near future...

mother of the house

mother of the house . 2024

 

printing 'mother of the house' at full special studio pop up, sikka art and design festival . 2024

it's the first day of spring and mother's day in the arab world. coincidently, i just received my risograph editions of 'mother of the house', a new print i worked on at full special studio's pop up at the recent sikka art and design festival. if you haven't seen my previous post about full special studio at sikka and the risograph prints i exhibited at their pop up space, please read here.

during sikka, i was asked to create a new risograph print during the duration of the fair. to complement my already exhibited series 'children of the house', i thought my new print would be aptly titled 'mother of the house'! in the world of voguing and ball culture, every house has a mother to their children – i'll leave it to you readers to do a little research to know more on your own! 

i love the quality of the marks from my pen drawings printed as multicoloured layers on a single page. one again, thank you full special studio for the invitation, guidance and support with being a part of their launch and printing my works. if you haven't yet, please follow full special studio right now!!!

ending this post with a happy mother's day to all the mothers out there. god bless...

ramadan kareem 2024

ramadan . 2024

it's that time of year again – ramadan kareem to those observing. may it be a blessed, holy month for us all. sending well wishes to anyone reading this, as well as your families and loved ones.

ramadan has been quite a challenging month for me in recent years. we do our best to observe the holy month, and some years are better than others. here's hoping this year is one of the better ones. remember to be charitable, grateful, mindful and thankful. and keep those that are less fortunate in your thoughts and prayers, especially with all the current tragedies happening around the world.

i'll keep this post short and sweet, and end with a big thank you to shamal holding for giving me the opportunity to work on the illustration above as their ramadan greetings for this year. i'm pretty happy with how it turned out.