Endless journeys: Salma Raza’s works know no bounds

KARACHI: A memory is a starting point and then her subconscious leads her through a journey. Abstraction at its best, Salma Raza's works remind one of how a free mind knows no limits.

Raza graduated with a Bachelor's in Painting from the Rhode Island School of Design in 1997. She has been teaching art for the last 10 years in London. Currently, her artworks are on display at the Full Circle Gallery. The exhibition is titled 'Like the ceiling can't hold us'.

"I love travelling," she said. "I look and absorb everything around me. Recently I went to South America and the waterfalls, forests, flowers and rocks inspired me."



The beauty of nature can be seen in her paintings. The artist lets her creativity explore and plays with the layers of paint to achieve her effect. One of her artworks, titled 'Fire Light', reminds one of the drawings that little children make; when young, children's minds are free to think and are not bound by the standards and stereotypes set by society.

The shapes and colours do not have to adhere to a strict yardstick - they do not have to be 'normal'. The white colour in this particular artwork has a significant effect as it signifies freedom and power in a number of ways. First, the kite-like figures are white. Kites are associated with flight and can be taken as a symbol of freedom. Then, the rough lines across the painting speak of the artist's power to deviate. The lines do not have to be straight. Their form differs and they are symbolic of the artist's free mind.

Moreover, the layer of blue that has been painted over by the shapes has a powerful effect on the viewer. It seems to remind us of the memories that we push to the back of our minds.

This technique of overlapping layers of paint has been taken a step forward in 'Ice Storm'. Raza not only paints and repaints in this one; she washes away part of it and scratches away a layer of paint. Mountains and roses recur in this one, too. However, the powerful role is again played by the colour, white. The white lines appear to be paint that has been scratched away and, again, speaks of the artist's freedom to explore.

Another important aspect of this artwork was shared by Raza. "I used rope strands instead of a brush. It was like taking a chance and I did not have control over how the drawing would become. I let my subconscious and the rope strands decide how it would be."

Talking about the title of the exhibition, she said that it speaks of the 'emotion that can't be held'. According to her, the viewer should feel more spiritual than confined when looking at her artworks. The ceiling seems to be a bound above us. However, a free mind would not care for a ceiling and can go beyond it.

"The forms in my works are not just one image in my mind," she said, while speaking to The Express Tribune over the phone. "They are open to interpretation and I want the viewer to associate her/his own experiences and memories with them."

Seventeen of her 21 paintings were sold at the opening on Friday. The show will run till January 16.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 1^st, 2014.