Alishba Malik | Masjid Above the Clouds

Alishba Malik is a Pakistani-Canadian artist whose work is rooted in her love for painting, imagination, and Islamic heritage. Working primarily with oil paint on canvas, she is drawn to its vibrant colours, rich texture, and, most importantly, its ability to forgive a mistake—or a million of them. She enjoys painting without rigid lines or rules, allowing loose marks to suggest an idea and leave room for the viewer’s imagination to fill in the rest.

Her artistic journey began with Bob Ross, where she learned to paint happy little trees, soft clouds, and everything in between. What started as copying his techniques grew into a personal creative outlet where she could decide what belonged on the canvas. Today, Alishba paints what feels meaningful to her. Her paintings of mosques are a celebration of her Islamic heritage and a reminder that art, like imagination, has no boundaries.

In this painting, I wanted to portray the masjid as a place that feels connected to the sky and, in turn, closer to God. I used a monochromatic palette of blues and greys to create a quiet, peaceful, and dreamlike atmosphere. I painted layers of clouds in the background and placed the masjid within them, with additional clouds covering the bottom of the structure. This makes the mosque appear as though it is emerging from and becoming one with the sky, rather than simply existing within it. I used a bright crescent moon as the main source of light, allowing its glow to illuminate the masjid and create soft highlights across its structure. The light gives the mosque an almost angelic presence, emphasizing its importance and beauty.

For me, being in a masjid creates a feeling of peace and closeness to God. Through this painting, I wanted to capture that feeling visually—to show a place that feels almost heavenly, where the separation between the physical world and the spiritual world becomes less defined. The clouds, moonlight, and mosque work together to represent the comfort, beauty, and spiritual connection I feel when I am in a masjid.