“Karimah grew up in Newport, South Wales, in a Yemeni, Bangladeshi and Welsh family. She moved to London about seven years ago to study and graduated with an MA in architecture from the Royal College of Art. Unsurprisingly, given this background, Karimah thinks carefully about the consumption of her art and the value of multidisciplinary design.” - iD

BIO

"Born in Wales with Yemeni and Bangladeshi heritage, Karimah has an expressive, bold aesthetic and is heralded for ‘taking stories of community gatekeepers full circle, from the canvas to the streets‘. Karimah creates live paintings at performance events across London and New York to highlight the importance of communities in the city. 

After graduating with an MA in Architecture from London’s Royal College of Art in 2016 and the Mural Career Development programme in Toronto, Karimah went on to work with world-leading institutions and brands, most notably The Barbican, Ferragamo, Burberry, The Art’s Council England, The Highline New York, Toronto Council and Vans to name a few.

“It’s all part of Hassan’s ongoing mission to use art as an instrument to connect. Not only does she have the support of the diverse community she’s cultivated, but since fall 2020 she’s been an artist in residence at the prestigious Sarabande Foundation, the legacy of late fashion designer Alexander McQueen.” - Elle

Karimah has also worked on many successful partnerships under Alexander McQueen’s Sarabande Foundation, where she was an artist in residence. Her project ‘Strangers Yearbook’ – a real-time Insta-gallery featuring portraits of strangers and the various emotional states they experienced during lockdown garnered worldwide success. It was released as a published book and permanent public exhibition in Kings Cross, London.

“Karimah engages a broader community and breaks down elitist barriers, bringing other people’s stories to life, lifting them and highlighting them in their own environments.” - iD

The pivotal aspect of Hassan’s practice involves hosting ‘community showcase teasers’ under the disguise of an exhibition. Karimah exhibits her paintings alongside poetry readings, open-mic sessions, live jazz, and even football matches in a curated lineup. In this way, Hassan combines the artwork, the painting subject, and community members together in one space. 

Karimah creates her work from the studio to the street, to the canvas; it moves between these spaces, questioning the delineation between street art, fine art and community art. The journey of each piece and the audience it connects to is as fascinating as the art itself."