FIRST THINGS FIRST!
I’m selling signed mini-prints for only $10 each! They’d make perfect little postcards, flare for your refrigerator or even a cute little bookmark. Send an e-mail to yumnaaa@gmail.com for more info, and hurry! There’s only 24 for sale and they’re going to sell quick! Don’t mind the grainy photo, the prints are fantastic quality, promise.

Next, I worked on a 20-page travel guide to Yemen’s magical island of Socotra with Brian Okarski of Department International. It’s in the latest issue of Brownbook Magazine. Not to brag or anything, but between my words/photos, and Brian’s incredible design, this thing is pretty freakin’ amazing. Find where they’re sold in your country at brownbook.me!

And finally, on January 30th at Dubai Knowledge Village, I’ll have the honor of speaking about my work in Yemen for Gulf Photo Plus’ Slidefest! If you’re lucky enough to attend, I’ll be sharing some never-before-seen photographs from my last trip there. It’s going to be an incredible evening with great photographers. Best part of all?! IT’S FREE! To be honest, I’m actually quite nervous. Speaking in front of 400 people?! Insanity! Come join us at 7pm, say hello, ask me questions, and enjoy a night of visual inspiration.

View the rest of the photos here: Prints, News, Events

When I’m not blogging here, you can catch me posting photos on Instagram, @yumnaaa

Let’s be friends!

View the rest of the photos here: Catch Me

Arabia Felix, the Latin name for “Happy Arabia” was coined by geographers to describe the southern parts of the Arabian Peninsula, including modern Yemen. Throughout history, the cultural similarities from Northern Africa, the Middle East and even as far out as India have been evident, with music as one of the most distinct unifying forces. You hear it in the beating drums, the heartfelt strings, the poetic lyrics of love and life, and you understand that if there is one thing that can unite a region, it is the music. Music tells stories, teaches one a valuable lesson of history with each song that is made. From the 50′s to the early 80′s, we see a strong Western influence in music produced, especially in the gulf region, reflective of the colonial power in place. After Iran’s revolution in 1979, Khomeini ordered all popular music to be banned-a true symbol of the political repression. I begin my ongoing exploration of music produced during these times as an exploration of history. I share with you to open your ears to the beauty of these cultures, to help teach an invaluable lesson about these regions through something as basic to us as music.

I hope you enjoy listening as much as I’ve enjoyed discovering and sharing.

DOWNLOAD HERE

View the rest of the photos here: Arabia Felix

I was recently interviewed by the lovely Zeyna Sy over at Dazed Digital. It is currently the most viewed article on the site. Exciting!

Also, after being accepted into Milk Underground and showing my prints at the Milk Gallery, the prints are now on sale at the Milk Store

I’m putting up another round of prints on my personal store again, but bigger and better this time! More on that soon!

Happy 2012, friends!

View the rest of the photos here: Press and Prints

For the next week only, I’ll be selling select prints of my work. Click on the above image to enter the store! When I’m back from my travels in August, I’ll be selling more prints with a larger selection and even taking personal requests for your favorite photographs!

These won’t be around for long, so get ‘em while they’re hot..

View the rest of the photos here: PRINTS FOR SALE

And with that, I’ll leave you this month’s mix!

DOWNLOAD HERE

Enjoy!

View the rest of the photos here: Swimming Lessons

I figure most people who read the news every day have no idea what a day in the life of a Yemeni would be like, and as much as I’d love to be there right now to document it, this is the best I can do. Yemen was once a culturally and agriculturally thriving country, known to geographers as Arabia Felix (Latin for Happy/Blessed Arabia) and it pains me to know that as each day passes, it continues to diminish due to corrupt governance and an incredibly qat-addicted population.

Young and old, men and women-practically everyone in Yemen chews qat (also known as khat, quat, etc). In almost every single one of my photographs, you can see men sporting a large bulge in their cheek, that’s qat. Women are just as guilty, but since they’re covering their faces most times, one doesn’t notice it as much. It’s a highly addictive stimulant which causes a sense of euphoria, but in actuality it translates to unnecessary blabber and laziness. On a large scale, qat leads to many other substance abuse problems and generates a practically inactive population. Think about this: Yemen’s gross national income does not exceed $900, and each Yemeni is known to spend at least 30-60% of their income on qat. So what does this mean? Well, for one, Yemen’s agriculture has been taken over by qat fields, and 30% of Yemen’s water supply (one of the worst in the world) is dedicated to the irrigation of qat trees. It is estimated that Yemen will be out of fresh water by 2017-that’s in six years. Yemen’s current economy literally revolves around qat, and since Yemen is one of the only countries in the world to consider qat legal (making it unexportable), it is literally just a circular downfall of addiction.
Pictured above is an old man I photographed in Sana’a's Old Souk (Souk El Melh) selling Jambias, the traditional Yemeni dagger, and chewing qat.

Old Sana’a. Most visitors take note of Yemen’s gingerbread skylines, but little know that these were actually one of the first skyscrapers built in the world.
Traditional cemeteries in Aden (southern Yemen, formerly a British colony) where my Grandfather was buried. Most people don’t know that Yemen was once two separate countries-North and South Yemen. The North was dominated by traditional tribal rule while the South was a popular and quite cosmopolitan port. It was colonized by the British and was exposed to a very Westernized manner of living. My father ad his brothers and sisters were educated by the British, exposed to Western culture and were by no means the conservative Muslims you see in news segments today. My aunts never covered their hair and were immersed in arts and music. After the departure of the British and Yemen’s civil war in 1990, Yemen unified as one country and Northern (Sana’a) rule was prominent. This was the beginning of Saleh’s current regime.

I hope one day Yemen can return to being Arabia’s Felix.

Check out my older entries from previous visits to Yemen:
HERE, HERE, and HERE

View the rest of the photos here: Since I can’t be in Yemen

View the rest of the photos here: PRESS: ChinaShop & Time To Sign Off

Even though things have been crazy, it’s all very calming, and I like it. Oh, and of course, this month’s playlist. It’s a bit more on the chill side:

CLICK TO DOWNLOAD!
enjoy!
xoxox

View the rest of the photos here: Art Basel

PS- My blog turned one last week! Happy birthday, Blog!

View the rest of the photos here: secret spot