Welcome to my First Blog Post

Hello readers. Welcome to my first blog post. This is Mustafa Juzar from MJARTWORKS and I am glad to share with you all what MJARTWORKS has to offer. There is a lot of planning going around in my head but for now I will be sharing what made me enter this field, the initial phases of my journey and where am I at present. I thank my parents who have been my strength from the beginning, my friends who have encouraged me and appreciated my work at all times and those who have guided me and still are to achieve what I desire for.

I was fond of art since childhood. Flipping the pages of my old sketchbooks and often having a glance to the drawings I made of Disney characters and animals while I was a kid is something I adore to do now, while realising how I am climbing the steps towards perfection while filling those books. School was the place where I found my artistic side having ample of opportunities to discover my hidden talent. I recall the class in which I was given a grayscale drawing of a pigeon and was told to colour it but instead I replicated it which turned out to be quite similar with the original one making the teacher amazed and words of appreciations by my classmates that sparked the confidence in me to sketch more. At the end of the year, I was rewarded with a gold medal and a certificate of the best artist which truly was a moment for me.

In the year 2012 I got admission into my religious university Al Jamea Tus Saifiyah situated in Nairobi. Being in a new place with different people all around I lost track of drawing for two years until in the year 2014, my third year in the university my life steered into a new direction.

I decided to gift His Holiness Dr Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin a drawing of a ship as it holds a symbolic significance according to our faith. The idea was random since I had stopped drawing for a long time, but to my surprise it turned out to be unbelievably exceptional. In retrospect it was an indication towards something more. I remember when presenting the sketch, His Holiness TUS smiled, pointed towards it, and told one of those who were with him:

‘Hadiyo che, lo, lo’

‘It is a present. Take it, take it'

The same year during His Holiness’s visit to Abu Dhabi, I presented another artwork. His Holiness TUS held the piece in His hands and kept looking at it, then happily asked someone standing there,

‘Aa saglu kare che bhai?’

(‘He does all this?’)

I kept on presenting His Holiness TUS drawings on various occasions and the way His Holiness TUS appreciated my efforts encouraged and motivated me to explore this field more and more. There came a point where I decided to take it seriously and channelize it. I explored different styles and forms of art and came across Realism. My first attempt was a portrait of Superman and after that a sketch of a horse which was then displayed in the Radiant Arts ‘Roots & Wings’ exhibition and got sold by an Indian resident.

I have always utilized my vacations watching tutorials on YouTube and practicing to enhance my skills and made a target to complete 2 drawings a year. The first pencil set I bought was an ordinary kit from Amazon (UAE LINK) (US LINK). I even bought charcoal sticks (UAE LINK) (US LINK) and they were magical.

The pandemic was a golden opportunity for me as besides studies I could spend time establishing myself as an artist. I created 6 drawings that increased my collection significantly. Moving a step ahead I also began marketing my work through social media platforms (INSTAGRAM PROFILE, LINKEDIN PROFILE) visiting galleries, art studios and applying for workshops by which I gathered ideas and learning experiences.

Lastly my goal is to challenge myself to grow in this field every day, learning new forms and techniques and overcoming obstacle. I wish to live a prosperous ART JOURNEY till the end.

PS: Some of the links in this description are affiliate links that I get a kickback from 😜