It was in 2012 that I truly felt the urge to paint. I picked up a basic watercolor set and started painting whirling dervishes and whatever I fancied. They were watercolor paintings that copied some images that I liked. I then shifted to abstract art, and a friend of mine suggested I use acrylic. By then I had no idea what acrylic was and how to use it. I looked into Youtube, and took about 20 hrs of training with a well-established Iraqi artist, Hani Dallah. He said at our first meeting, "You have a free spirit, I will not try to restrain it. Hence, I will show you some techniques and leave the rest to you to continue with what you are doing." I never worried whether people liked the paintings or not, all I wanted was to be true to myself on the canvas. Sometimes, I feel, like Michael Angelo when he referred to the statues coming out of the stone, I too feel like pulling out a painting that wants to come out from the canvas. It is there, I simply pull it out.