From Medicine to Art: How Sana Rasheed Found Her Artistic Spark in Canada
Originally from Pakistan and now living in Halifax, Sana Rasheed has transformed personal loss, migration, and life experience into a growing artistic journey inspired by nature, healing, and self-expression.
Originally from Pakistan and now living in Halifax, Canada, Sana Rasheed’s journey has been shaped by many different chapters in life, including medicine, migration, motherhood, and art.
Sana has lived in different places and experienced different cultures, which have deeply shaped her perspective and the person she is today. The experience of living in different countries and being exposed to diverse cultures has strongly influenced Rasheed's worldview, both personally and in the way she approaches and creates art.
Rasheed's journey has not always been easy. However, the experiences she has gone through throughout her life have shaped her growth both as a person and as an artist.
Rasheed completed her medical studies at Sindh Medical College in Pakistan and later worked as a medical professional. Since she was very young, her biggest dream was to become a doctor. As she says herself, she spent most of her childhood studying, trying to complete all of her assignments on time, and staying dedicated to school.
Working in medicine shaped who she is today, teaching her compassion, patience, resilience, as well as the importance of human connection.
However, one of the most difficult and painful events in her life was the death of her mother when Rasheed was only 21 years old. It made her reflect more deeply on life, herself, and what truly brought meaning and fulfillment into her life.
“I wanted to change my course of studies but kept going and finished what I started. My mother was my rock,” she says.
Later, Rasheed moved from her home country to the United Kingdom, where she faced the challenges of adapting to a new country, culture, and way of life. In 2015, she later moved to Toronto, Canada, and today she lives in Halifax with her husband and two daughters.
Like many immigrants, her journey involved rebuilding, adjusting, and trying to find a balance between profession, dreams, family life, and personal growth.
Over time, art slowly became a form of healing and inner expression for Rasheed. As she explains, painting allowed her to reconnect with herself creatively during moments of change, loss, and grief.
"Art was never simply about creating beautiful paintings. It became a quiet place that helped with healing, emotional release, and personal transformation," she says.
Rasheed's artistic work is largely inspired by nature, outdoor landscapes, and scenes that create a feeling of calmness and peace. In several of her paintings, water becomes the center of the artwork, giving her paintings a peaceful atmosphere and, in many ways, an almost healing feeling.
Through soft colours, light, and natural elements, her artwork creates a sense of stillness and emotional comfort. Many of her paintings feel less like simple landscapes and more like quiet emotional spaces where people can pause, reflect, and reconnect with themselves.
The connection between her art and nature can be seen throughout much of her work. Although she says that she still does not feel that she has fully found her artistic style and is still searching for it, she feels deeply connected to landscape art, whether realistic or abstract. As she explains, much of her artistic work is inspired by places that left a strong impression on her while visiting them, almost as if she refuses to let those moments disappear forever, and through art she relives them once again.
Art is not something she can separate from her everyday life. It is not the kind of work that ends at a certain hour of the day, where you simply close the door and leave everything behind. It is a process deeply connected to inspiration and to the emotional side of the artist. In Resheed's case, her work is closely tied to her emotions, memories from the past, and the different moments and experiences that have shaped her throughout life.
Today, Rasheed continues to work hard on herself while balancing the many roles she holds in life: a hardworking woman, an immigrant building a life in a new country, a dedicated mother of two daughters, a former medical professional, and an artist whose passion for creativity continues to grow.
However, as she says herself, she does not separate these identities from one another. Instead, all of them quietly shape the emotions, perspectives, and stories that appear throughout her work.
Today, she lives in Halifax with her husband and two daughters while continuing to grow within the art world and develop her artistic journey. In the future, Rasheed hopes to continue building her artistic career, possibly even opening her own gallery, a warm and welcoming space where artists and the wider community could come together through creativity and connection.
Rasheed is currently participating in The People’s Artist competition (The People's Artist presented by Johnny Depp), an experience that can help introduce artists and their work to a wider audience. Although she admits that competitions like these can sometimes become commercialized and may not always feel completely fair, still she values the opportunity to share her artwork and, through it, tell the story of her personal journey.
Through her paintings, Sana Rasheed continues to tell a story of healing, change, memory, and the quiet beauty that can emerge from life’s most difficult chapters.
Written by Donjeta Elshani Hetemi
Donjeta Elshani Hetemi is a legal professional with a strong background in human rights, public administration, and international engagement. She serves as Governance & Public Affairs Coordinator and is also a writer for The Artistè Foundation. To send a story pitch email: Donjeta.Elshani-Hetemi@artistefoundation.ca