Habibi
One day you will ask me which is more important? My life or yours? I will say mine and you will walk away not knowing that you are my life.
– Khalil Gibran
Hello. My name is Mustafa Alami.
I create and illustrate stories, paintings, prints and cards.
To make a purchase, visit my Shop.
If you are a retail store, visit my Wholesale page. Email numyum@malami.com with any questions. I also launch applications as a UX Designer at malami.com.
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No Rushin’ on the Russian
BuyThe river said to itself, There is no hurry. We shall get there some day.
– A. A. Milne
Read Story
Two enjoy a peaceful kayak ride down the Russian River in Sonoma in this illustration. Sketched during my summer cycling trips along the river.
My Day in Napa
BuyA bottle of wine contains more philosophy than all the books in the world.
– Louis Pasteur
Big Wave
BuyThe sea, once it casts its spell, holds one in its net of wonder forever.
– Jacques Cousteau
Read Story
Sketched while sitting on the beach in San Diego, this illustration captures the powerful connection we feel to the sea. Perfect for anyone who finds wonder in the rhythmic pull of the ocean.
On the Lookout for the Great Pumpkin
BuyI may not have gone where I intended to go,
but I think I have ended up where I needed to be.
– Douglas Adams
Walkin’ The Dog Buy
If you don’t have a dog – at least one –
there is not necessarily anything wrong with you,
but there may be something wrong with your life.
– Vincent van Gogh
Skateboarding San Francisco Buy
The moment you doubt whether you can fly, you cease forever to be able to do it.
– Peter Pan, J. M. Barrie
What's SUP and What's Down
BuyLife is a journey, not a destination.
– Ralph Waldo Emerson
Golden Gate Bridge to Paradise
BuyNothing compares to the simple pleasure of a bike ride.
– John F. Kennedy
Read Story
When I lived in SF, I couldn’t wait to get up on a Saturday morning and ride across the bridge. It was a joy to see people beam with excitement as they glide through fog for the first time. If I am lucky, I make it across without getting hit by a selfie stick. I drop down to Sausalito, enjoy the scene, ride through the bicycle path and start climbing Camino Alto hill. Take a right on the other side, cross over the freeway and merge into Paradise Drive. An 8 mile stretch of rolling hills with stunning views of the bay. I can just go. The cold city fog is a distant memory. I roll into Tiburon, have lunch, finish my wrap around the Peninsula and ride it home to SF.
Available as a signed print and card.
Surf Stinson Beach
BuyRead Story
When COVID hit and my design projects fizzled, I switched gears and started painting things that made me happy. I flipped through my sketch book and found this character. I don’t actually surf, but always enjoyed being at Stinson Beach, California. I am perfectly happy on my boogie board taking on the waves with my son.
The original was painted with a mix of acrylic, house paint, paint pens, and color sticks on 16” x 16” wood. I photographed the painting and digitally enhanced it. Now it is available as a framed print and card:
16"x16" Acrylic Paint on Wood. Available as a signed print and card.
Great Blue Heron in Sausalito
BuyCreativity is the Blue Heron within us waiting to fly; through her imagination, all things become possible.
– Nadia Janice Brown
Read Story
I would ride my bicycle around Richardson Bay for a project in Tiburon. Not many things would make me completely stop and sketch. The sight of a Great Blue Heron does it.
After painting Surf Stinson Beach and the pandemic continued to drag on, I flipped through my sketch book and found this. It was a simple sketch that needed an interesting background. I used acrylic, house paint, paint pens, and color sticks on 16” x 16” wood. I photographed the painting and digitally enhanced to improve on the original. I printed a few and they quickly sold. Now it is my most popular artwork in Sausalito.
16"x16" Acrylic Paint on Wood. Available as a signed print and card.
Climb Mt. Tam Buy
The mountains are calling and I must go.
– John Muir
Read Story
Getting on my bicycle and climbing Mt. Tam is one of my favorite things to do. This image started as an idea going up Bolinas Ridge trail on my gravel bicycle. I generally ride alone, take breaks and sketch the things that come to mind. I focus on a few simple elements. If I cannot make it work on 3"x3" paper sketch then I usually abandon the idea.
When it was time to paint it, I wanted to experiment and find a more interesting way to create trees. I did the background with a brush and acrylic paint, but for the trees I started drizzling layers of watered-down paint, waiting for each layer to dry to see what happens, then repeating the process. The finished original is acrylic paint on 24"x24" canvas. It was a little dull. I photographed it and spend sometime on Procreate to remove the canvas noise, enhance the colors, add the layer of fog and make it pop.
24"x24" Acrylic Paint on Canvas. Available as a signed print and card.
Joy is a Redwood Tree and a Bicycle
BuyNo one has ever successfully painted or photographed a redwood tree. The feeling they produce is not transferable. From them comes silence and awe.
– John Steinbeck
Read Story
Once a month I ride up Mt. Tam and when I reach the intersection of Bofax and Ridgecrest, I take a break under my favorite Redwood Tree. It is hard to describe how magical that moment is.
24" x 48" x 1.5" Acrylic Paint on Canvas.
Blast Off
Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known.
– Carl Sagan
Available as a signed print and card.
Presence is Presents
The meaning of life is to find your gift. The purpose of life is to give it away.
– Pablo Picasso
Pencil sketch, Affinity Designer, and Procreate
Civilized Robot
BuyGreat is the fortune of he (or she) who possesses a good bottle, a good book, and a good friend.
– Molière
18”x18” Acrylic Paint on Wood.
Robot and Red Balloon
BuyNobody can be uncheered with a balloon
– A.A. Milne
20"x20" Acrylic Paint on Canvas.
Happy Spring RobotBuy
Pencil sketch and colored in Procreate.
The Thinker Buy
Life is a tragedy to those who feel and a comedy to those who think.
– Molière
16"x16" Acrylic Paint on Canvas. Available as a signed print and card.
Lost in Space Buy
The universe is a pretty big place. If it's just us, seems like an awful waste of space.
– Carl Sagan
36" x 36" Acrylic on Canvas. Available as a signed print and card.
Snowbirder Buy
To appreciate the beauty of a snowflake it is necessary to stand out in the cold.
– Anonymous
Available as a signed print and card.
Oh! I ForgotBuy
To err is human, to forgive divine.
– Alexander Pope
Image from Bird's Wisdom story. 3" x 3" pencil sketch and Procreate on iPad. Available as a print or card:
Weathering The StormBuy
Out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls; the most massive characters are seared with scars.
– Khalil Gibran
Available as a signed print and card.
Perfectly Imperfect
BuyGood enough is good enough. Perfect will make you a big fat mess every time.
– Rebecca Wells
Available as a signed print and card.
Bridgeway to San Francisco
BuySan Francisco is the only city I can think of that can survive all the things you people are doing to it and still look beautiful.
– Frank Lloyd Wright
16"x16" Acrylic Paint on Wood.
The Gift
BuyWe are born of love; love is our mother.
– Rumi
Read Story
It was May and I was at the Depot Bookstore in Mill Valley. Mother’s Day cards were on the rack. My mom passed away and the thought of celebrating the day always makes me sad. But, somehow, a happy moment came about and made this drawing. The thing is, it never really mattered what I gave my mom as a gift. A scrappy flower would bring her joy.
Available as a signed print and card.
I Love California
BuyLife without love is like a tree without blossoms or fruit.
– Khalil Gibran
Read Story
I started a line of greeting cards and quickly realized that love is a big topic. I wanted to fill that gap. But, I didn't want to drift away from my "create local themes" focus. Quails and Poppies seemed like the perfect match. It was February and Poppies were about to bloom and we had a flock of Quails running around. I had 10 different poses made to get here. For the most part, they were facing each other. That never really worked. I wanted to create something that engaged the viewer more. This sketch came together at the end. It was time to paint it.
I had a 16"x16" wood panel in the closet. I started with a base layer using a brush and acrylic paint but quickly jumped to just drizzling and pouring the paint. After I finished the background, I traced my sketch of the birds and used paint brush to finish things. Unfortunately, I couldn't finish this in time for valentine.
16"x16" Acrylic Paint on Wood.
Big Catch
Buy The charm of fishing is that it is the pursuit of what is elusive but attainable, a perpetual series of occasions for hope.
– John Buchan
18" x 24" Acrylic Paint on Canvas. Available as print and card.
Man of the Sea
BuyMy big fish must be somewhere.
– Ernest Hemingway
20"x20" Acrylic Paint on Canvas. Available as print and card.
Petaluma Chickens
BuyI dream of a better tomorrow, where chickens can cross the road and not be questioned about their motives.
– Ralph Waldo Emerson
20"x20" Acrylic Paint on Canvas. Available as a signed print and card.
Surf Bolinas
24" x 24" Acrylic Paint on Canvas
ZoOm Yoga
Buyjust breathe
Read Story
I miss going to hot yoga, but joining a zoom yoga session is just strange. I really don't want to stream my awkward posses. The background was digitally illustrated and foreground was done on 10"x10" acrylic paint on canvas. I just masked the background and blended the two together to make something that works.
Available as a signed print and card.
Bada Bing!
Buy20"x20" Acrylic Paint on Canvas
Moo Too Sonoma
BuyMoo may represent an idea, but only the cow knows.
– Mason Cooley
24" x 24" Acrylic on Canvas. Available as a signed print and card.
Two Lost Birds
Buy24" x 24" Acrylic Paint on Canvas. Available as a signed print.
Santa Meets Santa
BuyFriendship is born at that moment when one person says to another, ‘What! You too? I thought I was the only one.’
– C.S. Lewis
West Coast Santa
BuyA wonderful bird is the Pelican.
His beak can hold more than his belly can.
– Dixon Lanier Merritt
Is it organic?
BuyNothing will benefit human health and increase chances for survival of life on Earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet.
– Albert Einstein
4"x4" Pencil Sketch and Procreate. Available as print and card.
The Beast
Buy24" x 36" Acrylic on Canvas. Available as a signed print and card.
Even Elephant Reads on the Potty
BuyIf you only read the books that everyone else is reading, you can only think what everyone else is thinking.
– Haruki Murakami
12" x 12" Acrylic on Canvas. Available as print and card.
About Numyum
The name Numyum was inspired by “birdie num num,” a line in an old Peter Sellers’ movie. Along the way, numnum somehow became numyum and represents one of my simple pleasures – tossing crumbs to birds.
I am frequently reprimanded for this behavior at outdoor restaurants, parks, and in Europe in general.
Things that bring me joy.
I rarely leave the house without a sketchbook and pencil. I draw what strikes me throughout the day – ideas, nature, people, and absurd moments. Later, some of the tiny sketches call out to be painted with bold colors. I paint because it brings me joy, and I hope these illustrations do the same for you.