IVS 2021 Thesis Display: A new spin on art imitating life

The Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture opened its door to showcase the talent and labours of its graduating batch of 2021 on Monday.

Replete with artists and aesthetes, the timeless Nusserwanjee Building looked like an art museum with the final projects of students from all five departments - fine arts, architecture, interior design, communication design and textile design - on display.

The exhibition carried a variety in the media the artists chose to work on, ranging from ceramics, textile, design, to photography and architecture. But all made a point - reflecting life-changing moments in the lives of the artists.

While the themes ranged from socio-political commentary to sustainable fashion, fine art students failed to escape the rapidly urbanising world around them.

The Price We Pay for Progress:

Aliza Ghaffar’s deeply personal Fine Art thesis, now on display at the school, is an attempt at linking urbanisation and the corresponding increase in the population of people living in Karachi to the disappearance of skies.

“I live in Gulistan-e-Johar, and this is what I see from my balcony,” she points to a partially cut canvas with congested little balconies painted on it.

“This is all I can see, I cannot see the sky because there are so many buildings, so I’ve eliminated the sky from my painting because all I see from my window are skyscrapers.”

Afiya’s work revolves around the creation of an alternate reality with plants that had lost their original form.

The emotive yet in-vogue quality of Aswad Anees’ work is what made his installation one of the most popular ones.

Explaining the thought process behind his interlocked LED-lit threads, he said, “I moved to Karachi from Larkana and the thing that had the most impact on me was the pace of this city. I was also interested in photography, so I used to take long-exposure shots of the city’s traffic. This installation is how I see Karachi’s pace.”

The standout piece in his display is a ceramic sculpture of a baby with a varifocal camera as its head.