Pushing boundaries

Drawing influence from her mother as well as her identity and life experiences, illustrator and visual artist Hafizah Jainal has a personal style that is fun and fearless, yet extremely relatable.

- DESIRE FANG

Visual artist, illustrator and designer Hafizah Jainal (also known as Hafi) is unflinchingly bold. In fact, you can sense her plucky attitude in her work and personal life, which the 34-year-old occasionally shares through her brutally honest but humorous illustrations.

Hafi, who is also creative director of local independent food title Seasonings Magazine, has been vocal about her challenges living life as a woman of a minority race in Singapore. She had to deal with imposter syndrome - which she still struggles with today and this was compounded by the fact that she felt she had to prove herself, given that she was a minority in the industry.

"I was always thinking I was never enough as a creative person... I always felt that I had to work twice or thrice as hard as my peers to get to where I want to be," she says.

Thankfully, Hafi has since come to terms with her identity - in fact, she embraces it, and it's evident in her work. Last year, she collaborated with the Malay Heritage Centre (MHC) to create "Fesyen Forward", a reimagining of Malay fashion magazine covers from the 1950s and 1960s.

Hafi's illustration style is cheeky, whimsical and fun - much like her personal style. She says she gets her inspiration from her mum, whom she describes as her muse: "I love looking at old photos of my mother when she was my age. She has a very sophisticated style that is not over the top," she shares. "I take some style cues from her, especially her love for wearing oversized buttoned-up shirts with a pair of relaxed slacks.