“Art doesn’t have to be perfect to be powerful, it just has to be true.” – Uma
Uma was born in Nairobi, Kenya and now lives in southern California. These words are more than just a belief to Uma, they’re a guide. She is an artist, an educator and the founder of the Uma collection, a digital media brand she launched in 2020 to honor identity and overlooked stories. Her creativity brings together communities, culture and self-expression in ways that feel both deeply personal and timeless.
From a young age, Uma gravitated towards words and images. She kept journals and diaries close, adding her thoughts into writing while immersing herself in storytelling, television and the digital world. She said that her poetry often comes from the inspiration of her younger self, but today it comes from a place of healing and liberation. Her photography is about finding the essence of a moment, the details, texture, emotions and movement that people often overlook. To her, the camera is a way to capture stories of her and others; this has been what’s inspired her the most in her creative journey.
Uma’s dream is to stay consistent with her art and let it grow with her as she moves through different versions of herself. She hopes to keep publishing collections of poetry and photography, and host more exhibits while building spaces where people can share and build a community.
If people were to take away something from Uma’s work, she would want it to be for people to know that every wish and thought has the power to become a reality, by giving it a space to exist. She wants people to see that personal experiences can become universal when shared, and how that creativity can be both a form of self-expression and a gift to others.
At the heart of her vision, Uma hopes her work will serve as both a shelter to her and an open door for others to believe in themselves, while making a clear platform that shows the voices of those often overlooked. Showing that creativity can be personal and collective. Whether it’s through poetry, photography or fashion, she wants her work to show proof that healing and expression leads to empowerment.
For Uma, capturing the unnoticed isn’t just another artistic practice, but a form of storytelling.