Miniature art: Relieving individual pain through artwork
Work of five contemporary artists of the NCA on display.
Some of the works at the exhibit. PHOTO: EXPRESS
ISLAMABAD:
Miniature art is often stereotyped and interpreted through the usual symbolic language of visuals. For example, monarchs, doe-eyed beauties or horses dating back to the Mughal era.
However, weaving their own narratives into the art form, five contemporary artists from the National College of the Arts showcased their artworks at Satrang Gallery on Friday evening.
Titled “En-closure” the show features the artworks of Ramzan Jafri, Rubab Jawaid, Shahabdullah Alamee, Shakila Haider and Yasir Waqas.
Zahra Khan, the gallery curator, while talking about the exhibition, said, “United by their love of art and their ability to find solace through their work, these artists use their painting process as a means of finding closure against the atrocities they have faced individually.”
Rubab Jawaid has recreated the essence of embroidery on fabric, using cross-stitch material. “I think embroidery and miniature are similar,” she said, adding that she was fascinated by her mother and grandmother when they stitched patterns back in her childhood, but she herself never got the time to learn it.
Irsa, a guest at the gallery said one of the miniature pieces reminded her of the concept of infinity, as tangible surfaces merge into an endless horizon of sorts on the canvas.
Shakila Haider takes on a bolder stance with her series, “Beyond the border”, which talks about her father’s persecution in Afghanistan on suspicion of being a Soviet supporter.
“The series is like a tug-of-war between my experiences with my father, and my father’s feelings for the world around him. But the ultimate paradox is that I want to immortalise through my artwork that where I was a casualty of war, I choose to stand as a symbol of hope and inspiration,” she said.
Shrouded behind metallic, geometric patterns, the little details of colour shine through in her canvases. Glimpses of burqa-clad women hovering over sewing machines, hints at the reality that not all get to see.
Shah Abdual Alamee’s waxes philosophical with his canvases. Inspired from the poetry of Rumi and Iqbal, he explores the concept of duality. “Making a choice brings you to a struggle, a fight that you need to make or else the path of escape. Finding your reality in the easy way or taking the hard route through,” he said about his work. One of the pieces titled “Khaar” (meaning thorn in Persian language) shows demons creating obstacles for the innocent, demure angelic figure that must fight for itself.
Yasir Waqas explores the conflict within one’s self. Destined to become a GPL pilot and an aircraft mechanic like his father, was not enough for Waqas who grew up around toy airplanes, dismantling and joining them together and learning mechanics of real airplanes. However, he felt limited and constrained.
“Something I wasn’t really sure about, gave way to conflict within me,” said Waqas whose art pieces are an amalgam of airplane parts with a bird focal to the image and a mandala in the backdrop, through which one can reach nirvana. He takes the organic, merging it with the metallic, much like the natural and constructed layers of the human psyche and states of mind.
Like Haider, Alamee and Waqas, Ramzan Jafri belongs to Quetta. He was cognizant of the reality that the environment over there was not very conducive to art activities. “Everything that happens around me, affects me directly or indirectly and becomes the subject matter of my artwork,” he said.
His miniature paintings enable him to stay in touch with the centuries-old traditions of the Indian subcontinent, while he also incorporates modern techniques such as collage and mixed media to express himself.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 12th, 2014.
Miniature art is often stereotyped and interpreted through the usual symbolic language of visuals. For example, monarchs, doe-eyed beauties or horses dating back to the Mughal era.
However, weaving their own narratives into the art form, five contemporary artists from the National College of the Arts showcased their artworks at Satrang Gallery on Friday evening.
Titled “En-closure” the show features the artworks of Ramzan Jafri, Rubab Jawaid, Shahabdullah Alamee, Shakila Haider and Yasir Waqas.
Zahra Khan, the gallery curator, while talking about the exhibition, said, “United by their love of art and their ability to find solace through their work, these artists use their painting process as a means of finding closure against the atrocities they have faced individually.”
Rubab Jawaid has recreated the essence of embroidery on fabric, using cross-stitch material. “I think embroidery and miniature are similar,” she said, adding that she was fascinated by her mother and grandmother when they stitched patterns back in her childhood, but she herself never got the time to learn it.
Irsa, a guest at the gallery said one of the miniature pieces reminded her of the concept of infinity, as tangible surfaces merge into an endless horizon of sorts on the canvas.
Shakila Haider takes on a bolder stance with her series, “Beyond the border”, which talks about her father’s persecution in Afghanistan on suspicion of being a Soviet supporter.
“The series is like a tug-of-war between my experiences with my father, and my father’s feelings for the world around him. But the ultimate paradox is that I want to immortalise through my artwork that where I was a casualty of war, I choose to stand as a symbol of hope and inspiration,” she said.
Shrouded behind metallic, geometric patterns, the little details of colour shine through in her canvases. Glimpses of burqa-clad women hovering over sewing machines, hints at the reality that not all get to see.
Shah Abdual Alamee’s waxes philosophical with his canvases. Inspired from the poetry of Rumi and Iqbal, he explores the concept of duality. “Making a choice brings you to a struggle, a fight that you need to make or else the path of escape. Finding your reality in the easy way or taking the hard route through,” he said about his work. One of the pieces titled “Khaar” (meaning thorn in Persian language) shows demons creating obstacles for the innocent, demure angelic figure that must fight for itself.
Yasir Waqas explores the conflict within one’s self. Destined to become a GPL pilot and an aircraft mechanic like his father, was not enough for Waqas who grew up around toy airplanes, dismantling and joining them together and learning mechanics of real airplanes. However, he felt limited and constrained.
“Something I wasn’t really sure about, gave way to conflict within me,” said Waqas whose art pieces are an amalgam of airplane parts with a bird focal to the image and a mandala in the backdrop, through which one can reach nirvana. He takes the organic, merging it with the metallic, much like the natural and constructed layers of the human psyche and states of mind.
Like Haider, Alamee and Waqas, Ramzan Jafri belongs to Quetta. He was cognizant of the reality that the environment over there was not very conducive to art activities. “Everything that happens around me, affects me directly or indirectly and becomes the subject matter of my artwork,” he said.
His miniature paintings enable him to stay in touch with the centuries-old traditions of the Indian subcontinent, while he also incorporates modern techniques such as collage and mixed media to express himself.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 12th, 2014.