Maha Alasaker

Artist Statement

My practice is deeply rooted in rituals, material transformation, and the intersection of art and healing. I draw from the ancient wisdom of herbal medicine, Islamic healing practices, namely "Ruqyah Shariah," and the protective power of talismans to restore the balance between body, spirit, and environment. 

Women have historically relied on herbal remedies, sacred texts, and symbols to offer protection for themselves and their communities, but these practices are often overlooked in favor of modern medicine. My sculptural and installation works are a celebration of ancestral knowledge. By creating aesthetic connections between nature and spirituality — through natural colors, talismanic patterns, and invocations — I invite a reflection on the relationship between healing, empowerment, and female wisdom.

Through processes such as dyeing, extracting, and distilling natural elements, I examine how inherited knowledge and rituals transform over time, both physically and spiritually. Through the act of creating, I undergo a process of healing that serves as a form of therapy for me, as well as an act of reclamation: A means to restore sacred knowledge that challenges narratives of fragility and reasserts the power embedded in the body and spirit. Ultimately, my work is both a personal journey and a communal offering, inviting others to reconnect with protective forces rooted in nature, tradition, and Islamic healing practices.

Maha Alasaker
The Lost Tongue of the Earth (2025)
Installation
Cotton fabric, natural dye, wood, sound
130 x 130 x 300 

Rituals are an integral part of living. We are born in different lands from which we adopt rituals that are unique to our surroundings; inherited practices that are passed down through generations but are always at risk of appropriation or erasure. In my current installation, I create my own rituals inspired by herbal medicine, and Islamic and talismanic rituals to heal the soul and the body.

Lost tongue of earth is an invitation to enter a protective, healing, and reflective space. The installation displays hanging white cotton shroud fabric traditionally used in Islamic burial rituals to wrap the deceased. Its exterior is washed with Ruqyah Shariah — water infused with Quranic verses recorded and performed by the artist — and Ziziphus spina-christi leaves, revered for their protective and healing properties. Magic squares are embroidered on the draping material for extra protection. The patterns in the interior of the cloth are imprinted with herbal medicine through botanical printing techniques, inviting passers-by to slow down and reflect upon the enduring power of the natural world. The space, though restorative, also cautions against losing our connection to our environment and the wisdom rooted in the land.