‘It just represents diversity’: 11-year-old Iowan aims to inspire others through her art
If there's one thing 11-year-old Saily Bah knows
By Kayla James
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DES MOINES, Iowa (KCCI) — If there’s one thing 11-year-old Saily Bah knows, it’s that art has a way of speaking to people. And she uses her art as a display of representation.
“It just represents diversity,” Saily said, showing a piece of her art. “I wasn’t seeing lots of that on TV or scrolling through my phone or in books or anything.”
Saily aims to empower others through her art.
“I want to inspire young girls,” Saily said. “Young girls feel like they’re underestimated and they don’t have the ability to do most of the things they really want to do.”
Saily started creating art when she was 7. And what started as a hobby of making gifts for loved ones eventually became a full-fledged business — called Saily’s Swag.
Saily’s Swag is a family affair. Saily works closely with her mother, Rohey Sallah, who is an entrepreneur with her own Gambian cuisine catering business.
“People started asking me, ‘How do you season this? How do you season that?’ So then I decided to start doing my own spice blends,” Sallah said.
Now, Saily’s art is displayed alongside her mom’s Bah Kunda spices at different vendor opportunities in the Des Moines Metro — and her mom couldn’t be more proud.
“It’s meaningful to her to show representation and to show unity too,” Sallah said. “Like messages of joy and things that unite people.”
“Nobody can tell you what to do and nobody can draw your path for you. But you’ve got to draw yourself your own path,” Saily said.
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