Amaal Said

In partnership with Squarespace

Amaal Said is always looking for the miniature wonders in life. Through her photography and poetry, she illuminates everyday pleasures and overlooked treasures elevating them for herself and her viewer – reminding us to always pay attention and appreciate what is right in front of us. 

But if you look carefully, Amaal’s small beauties aren’t a cosy or kitsch act of privilege. Instead, the familial scenes, the broken cups in a kitchen sink, the two young boys playing on a beach are each telling a complex story about the world around us. 

Having graduated with a Masters in Arts & Politics from Goldsmiths in 2020, these intersecting interests have always played out in Amaal’s work. Danish-born to a Somali family, Amaal has always been aware of how the political impacts the personal and has used her art to explore this. In her photography, she creates portraits of women in a way that honours their lives without playing into stereotypes. 

When considering the idea of freedom, Amaal has turned the camera on herself as she explores who she is at a new juncture in life and how she relates to her new surroundings.

What are you always aiming for in your work?

I always want the women I photograph to feel beautiful. I’m always looking for sincere connections. I try to make sure we can go for a short walk together before a shoot or swap stories over a coffee. I feel so lucky when I have open and honest conversations with the people I work with.

What stories are you drawn to?

So many! I grew up being so interested in what was happening in the lives of the women around me, especially my mother and aunts. My parents were always on calls to Somalia, Kenya and Denmark. Some stories were traumatic, but many were also funny. The stories I heard as a teenager felt like they were coming from a different world, I wanted to document them as a way to understand them better.

So many of the women in my life are resilient. It’s not in their nature to complain, but as a young girl, I always wondered what it’d be like to give them the space to acknowledge their pain and suffering in a way that didn’t portray them negatively. I can’t speak on their behalf, but my aim is to document their stories as honestly as possible.

How did you approach the brief of photographing the essence or feeling of freedom? 

I’m in a completely new space in my life, and it feels like the perfect time for this brief. I’ve moved away from my family to the other side of London, and I’m rediscovering London. I’ve always been a walker, going on two-hour walks and binging on podcasts. I’m much closer to central London now, and there are so many places to explore.

For this brief, I wanted to capture myself in this new space, appreciating the light and the greenery.  I was really nervous about photographing myself in public, but I wanted to be brave and shoot self-portraits in the green spaces that have meant so much to me throughout lockdown and beyond. 

Do you think about the viewer when you’re creating work? Are you interested in their reading or how it makes them feel?

I try not to think of the viewer immediately. I attempt to go with how something makes me feel first and then sift through and edit things later. I’ve had periods where I’ve thought about an audience, and it’s made the process of doing the work feel impossible. I kept thinking about what people wanted to see from me and then failing to produce anything. I had to take a break from online spaces and refocus on why I was doing the work in the first place.

How has life for a photographer online changed? 

So many of the photographers I’ve chatted to have told me they’ve discovered how important personal work is to them. Not only personal projects but projects that were longer-term and didn’t have a deadline.

Having a Squarespace website is incredible for this reason. You’re able to create online albums and write about how you’re feeling. I’ve made a promise to myself to utilise the blog section of my website. So much has changed with the pandemic, and it feels really important to have spaces to reflect on these changes.

How do you maintain boundaries to ensure your freedom isn’t compromised – either in a work situation or in a personal relationship?

I’m still working on maintaining boundaries. It’s going to be life-long work because I was raised not to have any. So I learned to give and give, no matter how depleted it made me. 

Writing my feelings down has helped me work through this. First, I try to be mindful of how a situation or relationship makes me feel, and then I work at protecting my peace. Whether that means stepping away or having a conversation about my boundaries, this wasn’t always the thought process, so I’m happy to be growing in this way.

Who or what represents freedom to you?

Being able to do the work I want to do is freedom to me. 

Walking and discovering this new neighbourhood, lying in the park, and watching the clouds feels like freedom.

Having what I need to survive feels like freedom, especially when so many people don’t have the basics. Having a passport and being able to jump on a plane and come back to my loved ones is the ultimate freedom. Now, more than ever.