Rousing fear: In digital prints, artist Dominic Rouse draws out the darkness of light

Exhibition on at ArtChowk-the Gallery till November 1.


Express October 20, 2011

KARACHI: “To see the light we must first acknowledge that we are in the dark,” said Dominic Rouse, whose work is being displayed at the ArtChowk-the Gallery.

The black-and-white photographs instilled a sense of morbid awe in the audience when the exhibition opened on October 18. “This work, as contemporary as it may be, has a rather evil and frightening touch to it,” said Faiz Ali, an art critic. “I have never seen anything like it before.”

He mulled over a photograph of a blindfolded young girl in a knee-length dress, with her hands stretched out in front of her. A snake and a vulture lurked a few feet away.

Adjacent to it was a 17.75 by 13.75 inch photograph showing an infant walking down the stairs into a room full of human skulls, snakes, a vulture and a gun.

Rouse is originally from England but currently lives in Thailand. He was born in 1959. His work is characterised by toned silver gelatin prints from digitally composed large format negatives, blending computer technology with traditional photographic process.

“I came across his work at an exhibition in Thailand,” said Syed Faraz Ali, the curator of the show. “I thought it was extremely interesting and it would be appreciated in Pakistan.” He said that it is essential to bring a piece of the places one visits, and this was the piece of Thailand he chose to bring back with him.

According to Ali, Rouse uses custom computer software and refrains from using popular ones for editing his pictures. There were 11 black-and-white digital prints with tinges of silver, all at a cost of Rs36,750.

Bushra Hanif, founder of the gallery, stressed the importance of contemporary art and recognising its evolution. “Art already caters to a very niche market,” she said. “Our goal is to expose contemporary narratives from Pakistan to a wider audience and introduce international artists to the Pakistani market.”

Hanif explained that the picture of a decomposing man on the invitation was for a purpose. “We wanted to prepare the audience what was in store for them visually.” Another purpose was to gauge the reaction of the public. “I was told that some people found it rather horrifying,” she said.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 21st, 2011.

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