TIMES PAST Print

| Me in a Nutshell | I’m Sandra, an artist with a background in interior architecture, and a nomadic spirit that belongs nowhere or everywhere. I love making marks. A Jordanian-Canadian with Palestinian roots, I trained at Bath University, UK, and Pratt Institute in New York. I've been lucky enough to work at some of the leading names in the design world, internationally, in wonderful places like New York City, Toronto, Bristol, Florence, Amman, Abu Dhabi, and Dubai. So, I know a thing or two about great spaces. I’ve been making art for as long as I can remember. I’ve been making art for as long as I can remember. But, it wasn’t until the summer of 2017 that I chose to leave a 12-year career in interiors to focus on turning art into my vocation. I draw inspiration from heritage crafts, travels to cities, beaches and jungles, and a good cup of coffee. I live to play, inspire, and grow. | My Work (though I prefer to say Play) | My work is a place where my design background meets art, in an exploration of various media and mark-making techniques. It is an abstract interpretation of moments from my travels around the world, and a play on the notion of belonging and heritage; A celebration of diaspora. ‘Heritage’ is a body of work where art, design, and heritage come together in contemporary compositions and patterns that feature abstracted, deconstructed geometries inspired by Arabian motifs. The artworks in this collection are very controlled and feature delicate markings, made using a combination of colour pencil, marker and fine tipped pens. ‘Places’ is a collection inspired by various cities I have lived in or traveled to, where urban textures are a constant source of inspiration. The artworks in this collection feature layers of collage, and a rawness that reflects the urban texture inspiration. The markings in these compositions are expressive and uncontrolled - though still very intentional. They’re created using mixed media such as pastels, ink, and acrylic on a canvas or textured paper substrate.