“If you want to meet God then just go to Mecca,” said a friend to me once – well-meaning advice for someone looking to delve deeper into Islamic spirituality. But having travelled on my own to different parts of the world over the last five years, I’ve deepened my connection with God without making the pilgrimage by reaffirming my love for life and religion, regardless of where I visit. 

My name, “Noor”, means light in Arabic. And photography is painting with light. I like to think that there’s a sense of enlightenment I bring to my art. My works are for people to understand more about the world.

Because of terrorist attacks, cross-border conflicts, and violence, many people avoid certain destinations. When I first started travelling on my own, I teetered between the lines of fearlessness and fearfulness. My good friend Atikah Amalina would tell me, “you have to let go and let God”.

Some destinations are so stunning both architecturally and culturally, no combination of words can describe their immense beauty. Instead, I portray them in my photographs and poems. These are the spaces I have had the honour to encounter, reeking of light and all things sacred.