Artists' Visions: Shahzia Sikander

Tonight, Shahzia Sikander gave a fascinating talk with former MOMA curator (and current NYU art professor) Robert Storr at the 92nd Street Y as part of its Artists' Visions lecture series that takes place every spring. Storr began the evening by contextualizing the perception of the art world as being more multicultural and international, and emphasizing that the speed of information and ideas has opened up new dialogues and exchanges.

Born in Pakistan and an art world presence for about a decade, Sikander graduated from the Rhode Island School of Design and thereafter was involved with the experimental art collectives Project Row Houses in Houston, and The Renaissance Society in Chicago.

For Sikander, miniature painting is the point of reference for her to challenge assumptions. Feedback is an important component of her artistic process. In the past, she investigated inappropriate behavior in zones where people form opinions in order to understand her audience through performance. She wore a veil-like garment that concealed her body and gestures to a bar, and also experimented with agressive-looking clothing. In one work, she defaced a classical miniature with a "graffiti-like gesture," in order to "destroy its preciousness." She has experimented with veils both in performance, as noted, and in her painting, by using a white wash to conceal an image or layering images on top of each other. Her work aims, in part, to challenge stereotypes and confront the burden of colonialism. She resists regionalism because she feels that her work is culturally specific and she doesn't want to be "ghettoized" as Southeast Asian.

White is the basis of all Persian painting, and she often uses the color to make coded statements. In one work, a decorative border defined the painting and she explored that in terms of her labor. Elsewhere, she has used the circle as a modernist element to question the concept of "a finished look" as a measure of the virtuousity of skill. She has worked both in miniature and in larger scale. In India, there is a tradition of large-scale art in domestic space. Her other influences include dark fairy tales, and paintings in the hunt tradition, which are very beautiful and dense but reveal violence imagery when examined closely.

In one project, Sikander explored issues of art/artisan, high-art/craft, and ownership when she inserted her own photo into a miniature she bought in her Houston neighborhood. She is also concerned with the element of time, which is fluid in the classical miniature tradition, as several stories can unfold at the same time. In her animation, she uses sound to explore translation and issues of its failure and relevance. Large-scale works interest her because she isolates a landscape element and strips its details until it becomes basic, which is the opposite of her usual layering techniques.

When the artist attended school in Lahore, she began miniature painting because of her interest in the subject and its traditions. At the time, miniature painting was thought of as for "tourist-consumption" and "excessively kitsch." Sikander noted that there is a dialogue of authenticism in Pakistan, and she often feels pressured to make art there rather than in the United States. However, after visiting Pakistan after an eight or nine year break, she found that "everybody is making miniatures," and she saw an exact copy of her work in someone's house. The art world there is very small, but among active artists the scene is very participatory, and women are very involved.

Storr noted that in the 1980s, the buzz word was "appropriation," while that became "sampling" in the hip-hop usage of the 1990s. When asked if she feels that she is a taker or a convener, Sikander responded that she is a creator: she juxtaposes elements to create something new that comes from an investment of her time and understanding of traditions. In her animation, information is layered and different elements become visible through their movement. Sikander's work is essentially about layering and the process of transformation.

Comments

[Kayla]

I was at this lecture. I am writing a paper about Shahzia Sikander's work. Any input or leads would be appreciated. Good Review. Thanks.

[Editor]

Hi Kayla:

You might try contacting Robert Storr, the former MoMA curator who's now a professor of art at NYU. He curates the Artists' Visions series for the Y, and he'd be a terrific person to talk to at greater length about Sikander's work.

Best,
Lauren

[sarwat ajmal]

hi does anyone has shazias contact info ijust moved to syayes and to new york.she is my class mate and wandered how to contact her
thanks