nafs al lawwamah

Beyond al Nafsis a painting collection, exploring the tension between individuality and collective belonging through a sufi and indigenous perspective. The title refers to the nafs in Islam — the ego or self — which in Sufi thought must be transcended to move closer to the Divine.

These works reflect on how hyper-individualism, rooted in Eurocentric ideals, disrupts our capacity for empathy, solidarity and shared responsibility. Through layered compositions in acrylics and oil pastels, I use organic forms and symbolic motifs to explore the inner depths of a soul, the vulnerability of facing one’s inner self and the transformative potential of kinship, memory, earth-human connection and spiritual trust.