Maha’s Diary – Goodbye to Oxford House

Maha is our new Heritage Participation trainee and is keeping an illustrated heritage blog of her time.

Greetings Oxford House friends,

My name is Maha Shami. I am an Artist and the Heritage Participation Trainee at Oxford House. My Oxford House Diary uses reportage illustration. Reportage is a type of visual documentation where an artist’s captures a moment in time. This is where I draw from life to document what is happening around me at Oxford House. Using a visual diary allows me to express my thoughts and emotions. I write to do lists and make sure I keep track of what needs to be done at work. I have a passion for storytelling, and I want to share that with you.

As my contract at Oxford House draws to a close, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on my time here and express my gratitude to everyone who makes up the fantastic community at Oxford House.  The experiences I’ve gained during my time here have inspired me and prepared me for whatever opportunity I step into next. From organizing and delivering the summer program to collaborating on inspiring events with Kayd Somali Arts and delving into the fascinating world of archives alongside the brilliant archivist, Josie Sommer.  I have also adored the monthly jazz events and inspiring theatre performances (Groove & The Play Is Not the Thing). Meeting wonderful people has made my job at Oxford House amazing. I will continue to be an attendee at as many Oxford House events as possible. The experiences, camaraderie and support I’ve shared with the staff, regular users and visitors at Oxford House have made working here brilliant. Here are some of the drawings I’ve created during my time here at Oxford House that I haven’t shared in previous Maha’s Diary Posts.

Sketch of the jazz night that I didn’t include in my last post about the jazz.

Sketch of Anisa who works as front of house.

Sketch using polychromos pencils of the office in the basement in Oxford House. I wanted to experiment with colours in this image.

Quick sketch of Oxford House Café using felt pens and washy pens.

Quick sketch from an event run by Kayd in partnership with us at Oxford House using 4B pencil.