Professional Practice - Diana Ali

 

Diana Ali gave a really interesting talk about her life, art career and recent travels. In her work she values connectivity with people all around the world, gathering words and stories from strangers and artists who she creates correspondence with. She also uses raw, natural materials that have personal meaning to her, such as spices and mud - I think this is really inspiring because it proves that you do not need expensive or fancy materials to create something unique and valuable, and that your life and past influence your creative decisions.

From seeing her work, I feel more open to experimenting with different media in the future whether it’s designed for making art or not.




Ali brought in one of her ongoing pieces which is a huge length of fabric with transfer photographs from different places she has visited, and stamped lettering of their names. I think this is a really beautiful and unique way to document her travels, it is so much more creative than a photo album and really interesting to look at, especially with the texture of the fabric and the cracked surfaces of the photos.

It is already several metres long so looking at it is like going on a journey yourself, and it requires the viewer to have a certain level of engagement with the piece, which I want to be able to encourage in my own work.

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