Nargis was born in Ireland, grew up in Saudi Arabia as a Saudi of Pakistani descent and went to study in the US for her Business degree. As a child, she showed her love of art and her father decided to indulge her and bought her Winsor Newton oil paints along with large canvases. Her creative journey of exploring art mediums began. She tried everything from oil to glass paintings, pottery, fabric paintings and murals. She discovered the ease of Acrylics in her teens, and even though she loved oils more, she started painting in acrylics and sometimes selling art to friends and family. Now she focuses on oil, acrylic, mixed media and functional art via Resin.
While she was a student in Minnesota, she got married and a year after her first child in 1998, moved to Mississauga, Ontario, where two more children were born. Nargis has published several memoirs in the Milton library collection called Lifescapes, been published in various newspapers in Saudi Arabia and Minnesota and published a chapter, while in university, in a book called The Divine Mosaic, a collection of religious memoirs from people of all beliefs. Her latest publication is a parenting book titled: The Perfect Muslim Child.
After completing a diploma in Photography from the New York Institute of Photography in 2000, she worked as a wedding photographer for a few years until a physical ailment would not let her pursue this line of work any longer. To bring Muslim artists into the Canadian diaspora, she started the Art Exhibits in 2004 -2006 at the famous festival: MuslimFest, at the Living Arts Center – now held in Celebration Square – as the Exhibits Coordinator.
She and her family moved to Milton in 2005, loving the small-town feel, the farms and the escarpment, but a year later decided to explore living overseas, resulting in a move for five years to Dubai, Islamabad and Jeddah, returning to Canada in 2011.
In 2013 Nargis founded MY Voice Canada – a youth non-profit organization led by teenagers who express themselves via writing, editing, designing, photography, illustration, stage plays and videos. Her passion is to dispel ignorance about human beings of various backgrounds, as she has witnessed how ignorance of the ‘other’ can lead to negative stereotypes. Being a Muslim, she has felt that people of her faith have been especially portrayed incorrectly by the media’s sensationalism, often resulting in hate crimes.
Her passion is to spread the message of peace in her neighbourhood and community via art and dialogue. Nargis currently lives in Milton with her husband, 3 grown kids and a rabbit.
(This Traffic Box is located at Louis St Laurent Ave. and Farmstead Drive across from Boyne School)
Humanity First
Using the theme of being Exclusively Inclusive, the painting is a reflection of a Muslim girl’s thoughts and dreams. It shows the cultures and races of Muslims, depicting the requirement from God to become familiar with different nations and tribes and create bonds of familiarity and humanity. Justice for all is depicted via pouring the blood of people in war regardless of geography or skin colour by showing some of the flags of nations in war. It is an inclusion of all humans without excluding anyone on the basis of race, colour, or belief.
Some other works of the artists:
