About Materials & Fair Use

The Scheherazade Project uses National Geographic magazines from multiple decades, all featuring coverage of Southwest Asia/North Africa. This statement clarifies my use of this copyrighted material.

How the Material is Transformed

I transform magazine pages into large-scale abstract collages by tearing pages into individual fragments and applying them sequentially with gesso. The resulting works bear no resemblance to the original layouts—from a distance, they resemble mosaic-like television static, creating an entirely new visual experience.

Purpose of This Work

This project serves multiple transformative purposes:

Critical Commentary — Examining historical bias and orientalist perspectives in Western media's portrayal of SWANA culture

Personal Narrative — As a second-generation Arab American, I'm exploring how my family's story has been represented in American media

Artistic Expression — Using abstract expressionist methodology to explore fragmentation, memory, and meditative art-making

Data Science Research — Incorporating computer vision and environmental tracking to explore whether algorithms can capture elements of artistic decision-making

Fair Use

I believe this use constitutes fair use under U.S. copyright law due to its highly transformative nature, critical purpose, use of unrecognizable fragments, and no negative market impact on the original publications.

National Geographic® is a registered trademark of National Geographic Partners, LLC. This project is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by National Geographic.