Jaha Zainabu

I am a poet and painter from Long Beach, California. My journey in art and poetry has led me to many amazing experiences and people. So far I have released two one-woman shows, two cds, and three books. I recently recorded WOMEN IN THE VILLAGE GO 'ROUND AND 'ROUND as a book on cd. It will be released soon. Please stay tuned. WOMEN. is my collection of short stories.



THE PAINTER



I paint because it's my passion. My passion, my gift, my calling, my meditationI don't know the one accurate word here. I know that painting brings me the peace and balance to my life that poetry does, that praying does. It is a medium that I use to talk to the world, to God. I greatly aspire to use my art to heal, to inspire, to inform.



Red is my favorite color. Wood is my favorite material. Acrylic is my favorite paint. When I can't immediately get my hands on red acrylic on wood I use almost anything I can reach, grape juice, pomegranete, fabric.



My work in the past has been a lot of African inspired masks. What is coming out of me these days are children's faces. Large faces with all different expressions. If you put them together they almost look like a third grade class photo, except with much more color, bigger ears, wider eyes I am going through the sam faze in my writing. Writing in a much more childlike fashion. I am connecting again to my inner child and exploring who she was before adult voices and society's rules played a part in her decisions. The child in me is choosing. Choosing color, choosing wild outside the lines. Choosing texture and earth and the unknown. Choosing red for all that red is.



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