'Grief to gallery': The woman behind the £51k Malala portrait

Working under the name Zara Muse, Alexandra Johnson, a former city trader with no formal art background, has made a name for herself as an artist. Earlier this April, her painting of Malala Yousafzai was sold for £51,200 at Bonhams, a prestigious global auction house.

Her work is known for crafting richly textured portraits of women, each piece honouring quiet perseverance. During the UK lockdown in 2020, while still processing the death of her mother, Johnson found herself in her kitchen, palette knife in hand, attempting to cope with her grief.

"Malala represents strength and bravery — the kind of woman I want to celebrate through my work," she said in an interview with the BBC.

The portrait of Malala was put up for auction by one of Johnson’s collectors.

Now 27, Malala, was shot in the head by the Taliban at 15 merely for attending school in Pakistan, and is now a global symbol for girls' education, peace, and standing against extremism.

For Johnson, whose own experiences involve grief and caregiving, Malala’s narrative resonated deeply.

"I always go for powerful women, not for [their] jobs and career, just for their inner strength," said Johnson.

In 2002, Johnson left the corporate sector to become a full-time mother, and later a full-time carer after her mother was diagnosed with cancer. Her mother, Janet, who donated a kidney to her brother at age 60, laid the groundwork for Johnson’s initial artistic endeavours. “Everything I create is in her honour,” she states.

During the UK lockdown in 2020, Alexandra Johnson was still processing the death of her mother. A former city trader without a formal background in art, she found herself in her kitchen, palette knife in hand, attempting to cope with her grief. Little did she know at that moment that those initial strokes would pave the way for the eventual sale of her painting of Malala Yousafzai for £51,200 at Bonhams, a prestigious auction house globally.

Her debut painting, Angelique, fetched £22,500 in 2023. Another piece, Shape of Stillness, was sold for £47,500 in December. However, it is the portrait of Malala that stands as the emotional centrepiece of her artistic career—an artwork born from grief, strength, and an unwavering belief in women supporting one another.