Zainab Sumu turns ordinary objects into the extraordinary

MassArt alum Zainab Sumu, ’15 Fashion Design Certificate, is among WBUR’s 2026 Makers, honoring 7 Boston artists of color.

“Part of my work is giving contemporary form to African and diasporic traditional knowledge systems and material intelligence,” Sumu said. “And through these objects, through bodies, through rituals, through the cultural practices, it is how those memories, those knowledges, get to be carried.”

Read WBUR’s full story on Zainab and her work, and view the complete list of The 2026 Makers.