Fadwa Al Qasem
​Artist. Author. Poetess. Inspirer. In Arabic. In English. In color. I Am What I Art.

Picture

​Short version: Mixed media artist and bilingual author of 4 published books and contributions to 3 anthologies. Creator of I Am What I Art Manifesto. ​Palestinian-Canadian woman with a gypsy's spirit. 

Basic info:
Canadian-Palestinian living in Spain
Born in Tripoli, Libya 1963
My name is pronounced phonetically 
B.A in English Literature (UK)
Two Art Therapy Certificates (USA)




​Longer version: One of my greatest achievement as an author was being able to write and get published in Arabic because all my bringing and education was in English. I could read and write Arabic, but only like a 10-year old. I spent a great deal of my adult life reclaiming my Arabic language and my stolen identity as a result of the Israeli occupation of Palestine. When I finally did manage to write and get my short story published in Akhbar Al Adab of Cairo, I was stunned! 

​In 2005, I published my first collection of short stories in Arabic entitled The Scent of Cardamom. Paradise No More was published in Arabic in 2011, and in English in 2015. I contributed to two short story anthologies in English (In Our Own Words and Madinah) and one poetry anthology (And We Choose Everything). A World of Artist Journal Pages was published in the USA and it includes my work as a featured artist.

My short stories in Arabic were published in Akhbar Al Adab, weekly literary newspaper, Cairo, Egypt; Al Adab Magazine, Literary Magazine, Beirut, Lebanon; Literary Supplement of Al Bayan Newspaper, UAE; Al Quds newspaper, Jerusalem, Palestine; Al Quds Al Arabi newspaper, London, UK; An-Nahar newspaper, Lebanon. As an author, I also participated in the Emirates Airlines Festival of Literature in 2014 and 2015 in Dubai, UAE. I am currently working on my first novel plus a collection of poems. 

As an artist, I am currently focusing on mixed media and fiberarts, and I'm an avid visual journaler. I hold regular day retreats in my home studio overlooking mountain and sea views in the Spanish Costa Blanca. I developed I Am What I Art as a lifestyle concept that invites intention and mindfulness to the aspects of your life.
My top six values are
JOY
FREEDOM
INTEGRITY
PLAY
CONNECTION
BEAUTY
​
Courageous self-expression is our ultimate source of power and freedom.