Alaya Shah

My Skin Used to Shine (2022)
Oil on Canvas, Mirrors, Clay, Matted on wood, hung with nails 20“ x 24”

Mother's Love (2022)
Alcohol Ink, Glitter, Matted on wood, hung with nails 23” x 33”

Line up your edges! (2017)
Digital Print, Matted on wood, hung with nails 20” x 15.5”

For Vivek Shraya (2022)
Pen and Ink, Matted on wood, hung with nails 13” x 9.5”

Text: My Skin Doesn’t Belong to Me
Size varies with installation Alcohol ink paper pasted on fabric

Alaya Shah (she/her)

Alaya is a multidisciplinary artist who lives and works in New York City, with a diverse range of skills and expertise across various mediums, including set design and construction, sculpture, and painting.

She has acted as lead construction and production designer to several film and theater productions, including the music video, Janet, and films Heartbreak On Murray Hill, and Stand Out, among others. These sets involved the construction of numerous walls, one involving the build of an entire apartment set. She also has a particular passion for working for social justice and community outreach programs, including the Boston Public Schools Social Justice Mural Project, the Backyard Art Program, and the Georgetown Youth Community Center. Teaching has been a key part of realizing these types of projects as it offers some of the greatest opportunities to pursue projects that involve community outreach and engagement. Through starting her own business in 2015, Alaya has grown her skills in leadership and project management, allowing her to pursue various creative and community-oriented endeavors.

Alaya's work is informed by her passion for exploring the complexities of identity and intersectionality, as well as her commitment to creating spaces for underrepresented voices to be heard and recognized. Her artwork often documents ordinary experiences that are typically unrepresented in mainstream narratives. Through her creative output, she seeks to create new conversations and shift dominant narratives towards those that prioritize the lived experiences of historically silenced communities.

Artist Statement

My artistic practice centers on documenting the narratives of historically silenced communities through paintings, prints, and sculptures, and creating spaces for intersectional stories to be told and understood. I draw from personal stories, archival research, and my own experiences to create a visual record that highlights the diversity and complexity of POC queer experiences.

My work reflects the pain of feeling out of place in environments that do not reflect one's identity and experiences, much like the daughter's paisleys in the poem were a source of beauty and identity before they became scars and scabs on her face. Through my art, I seek to explore the complexities of intersecting identities and how they shape experiences. The struggle to reconcile cultural heritage with a sense of self is a common experience for many individuals who feel torn between tradition and modernity, and my work aims to provide a platform for these stories to be told.

Space and narrative are crucial elements in my work, as I seek to create physical and emotional spaces that embody intersectional narratives. By providing a platform for underrepresented voices, I aim to build community and foster understanding. My painting and illustration work relies on narrative, text, and poetry to communicate the reality of holding multiple identities, while my sculptural work creates physical spaces for these narratives to be told and understood. Ultimately, my practice is a tribute to historically silenced communities by documenting the experiences of those who have been forgotten by history.