Silent spectres

Izdeyar Setna has taken his work from the streets of Karachi to the galleries of Dubai.

My photographs have always been optimistic, featuring proud and hopeful subjects. Lately, though, I have felt that we, as a nation, have lost that faith in a better tomorrow. My new body of work tries to express our collective feelings about the violence in the country.

I aimed to capture the subconscious of my subjects — all of whom are people I encountered on the streets — by stripping away all unnecessary distractions. With monochrome paint on their faces and surroundings reduced a neutral earthy tone, their emotions became the focus of the picture. The thin veneer of paint allowed them to embrace their emotions in more powerful ways — it was as if the painted masks were somehow liberating. The black and white paint helps unify the different subjects, with black being the sum of all colours and white the absence of colour. Interestingly enough, when word spread that I was taking people to the studio and painting their faces, the street children started calling me ‘Bhoot wala Baba’, constantly asking for their picture to be taken.

All the images depict people trying to cope with living in the country. The picture which features a boy holding a fluorescent blue gun is a reminder of the constant threat of being mugged, while the torn photographs which have then been rejoined are a symbol of the constant struggle of the victims of violence to put their lives together. No matter how hard you try, they’re never the same again.

Disconnected by Izdeyar Setna will be exhibited at The Third Line in Dubai from November 10 to January 12, 2011

Published in The Express Tribune, Sunday Magazine, November 6^th,  2011.