My Interview for OzAsia exhibition, ‘Following Threads’
1. Explain how and when you got into henna painting?
I was introduced to Henna at the age of 3 by my grandmother and then for years I saw my mother drawing the patterns on me and many of my cousins, a night before all sacred ceremonies (religious, cultural and traditional), celebrated in our community.
At the age of five I was drawing on myself, and then by 12 I got confident to paint my cousins and, about 14 I started doing the neighbors and extended family. I graduated as textile designer and so creating patterns for anything and everything became part of my daily routine and thankfully still is!
2.Your henna patterns are so beautiful and intricate. What is your source of inspiration?
My love for nature and my family is the only inspiration I have. Love for life, Love for living, love for being a true person to myself, keeps me real and passionate about what I create and makes me want to never ever stop what I do.
3.We understand that you paint henna on an individual based on your “reading” of that soul. Explain this to us.
My patterns are stories of the souls, written in a language I understand and create. I don’t see the human form as a body, but I see the soul within them. I believe, humans are a form of energy (kind of light ), and over the years, due to so much materialism around us, that inner light has been put aside in many people and in some it’s almost died. When I draw the patterns, I see that light inside each soul, and try to bring it to the vision, and create a symbolic pattern that reflects that light. Hence, being able to create a new pattern every time I touch a soul.
4. You not only do henna painting on parts of the body but also on other surfaces. Tell us more.
Nothing is dead to me, as I am a worshiper of light and life. Every object that exists has a soul, and I like to draw on any visible surface to bring to reality, that true soul through my patterns. I work on human body, ceramics, silk, wood, wax, paper, glass, plastic basically EVERYTHING, because everything is nature and nature is everything and it’s all alive !
5. Do you sell your work anywhere?
I sell through my personal space Diya Studio, based in Norwood; Jam Factory and Urban Cow in the city; Red Poles in McLaren Vale; Purple Cockatoo in Magill; Handhorf Academy in Handhorf
6. What can your fans or henna lovers expect from Humna Mustafa in the near future?
You know I’ve never planned my life, as I like to move with the wind, having no direction in mind, go where my heart takes me. So to know what’s upcoming next, my fans will have to visit Diya Studio, on the 12th of Dec to see the new and upcoming range of my works as that’s when I launch the new collections for all to experience.
Subscribe to the Blog Feed