WHO AM I TO BLOW AGAINST THE WIND
&
Lali Khalid Shalalae Jamil
Satrang Gallery is an initiative of Serena Hotels Pakistan to encourage and promote talented artists in their pursuit of excellence
Cover Photograph by : Lali Khalid | Title: I AM AND I WAS | Medium: Digital Print on Paper | Size: 8 x 12
Satrang Gallery is very proud to present Who Am I to Blow Against the Wind, featuring the work of acclaimed artists Shalalae Jamil and Lali Khalid.
invited into the inner circles of family. Taking the role of a trusted relative or a close friend, the viewer is entrusted with a treasure trove of exquisite photographs. His viewpoint changes as he becomes a part of the visual memorabilia.
In this collection of pieces, Shalalae and Lali have captured the moments in between, those that lie on the boundary or at the cusp of life and vitality. Their strengths as artists are evident in every single photograph. The images appear to be deceptively simple, a baby at bath time, or a napping lady, but the photographs are immersed in layers of metaphor and inquiry. They effectively translate the skill of the artists, who have successfully created a narrative through a range of widely differing images. They are perceptive, peppered with queries and points of interest. The images vary in size and scope and range of focus; the artists have delved in deep and then pull back, increasing the range of the shots. These images are honest, they reveal charming and open expressions, and real situations. The artists are concentrating on the larger picture, the scene as a whole. The moments before, after and during the photograph become the focus of the image and thus of this show.
The pieces which form Who Am I to Blow Against the Wind? are deeply personal, varied snap shots and glimpses into familial life. A collection of memories, they are those images which on the surface seem banal, because they are regular and ordinary. These are images that might be unimportant to a stranger or an observer, since these individuals have their own archive of memories to sift through in remembrance. Guileless and guise less, these ordinary photographs exist in the albums of every family, tucked away, considered special but intensely personal. They also exist in the album of one’s mind, formed by the constant bits of information and images that filter in and are carefully stored away. They may be the ordinary amongst the masterpieces and therefore easily overlooked.
Shalalae and Lali are offering the audience a fantastic boon; they have invited the viewer to partake in an intensely private and personal scenario. The artists have captured familial scenes and private solitary moments. The viewer belongs in this set up. He is embraced, the artists have adopted and accepted him as one of their own. He is no longer a stranger, or an outsider, not is he a guest. He has been
These are pieces which have captured far more than the subject’s expression or position. The artists reveal more about themselves through the languid quality of some of the images, which is suddenly replaced by the sharp focus on a wrinkled face, with a perceptive gaze. Observing these photographs releases memories as a day is remembered; the moments of tranquillity constituting the calm before the storm, or the morning after a party; the before, after and during of the photograph is recalled; a loved one is mourned; a new life is celebrated. The viewer is privvy to a narrative, that he becomes a part of and makes his own.
Lali Khalid My photographs portray the existence in between lines. I am surrounded by edges and boundaries. Walking in between worlds; both private and public. Behind a chain link fence. Surrounded by shadows. Veiled by cobwebs. Obscured behind tall weeds. Fading on the edge. Disappearing in the mist. I stand alone. Alone and with him. I am and I was. Reflections become me and I am the reflection. Confronting and demanding. Divided and together. I question and question. What are these boundaries?
PRESSURE CHANGE Archival Print on Hahnemühle Paper12” x 8”
BOARDED WINDOWS
Archival Print on Hahnemühle 8” x 12”
AS WITH SWEET LEAVES, AS WITH SUBTLE CLEARNESS
Archival Print on Hahnemühle 8” x 12”
BETWEEN WORLDS
Archival Print on Hahnemühle 6” x 9”
BY BORROWED CAR
Archival Print on Hahnemühle 6” x 9”
EACH OF HIM
Archival Print on Hahnemühle 6” x 9”
PROSPECT PARK, BROOKLYN
Archival Print on Hahnemühle 6” x 9” SOMETHING TO DO
Archival Print on Hahnemühle 6” x9
Shalalae Jamil The images in Subterranean Homesick Blues are saturated with the intimate moments and underlying codes of family life. Shot in interior spaces in which private dramas get played out, they simultaneously expand and subvert the informal, contentdriven esthetic of the snapshot.
ABBEE
Archival Print on Fuji Paper 3.5” x 5”
Including portraits, landscapes and moments of interest, the work made is tied inextricably to the life lived - creating an organic, evolving, non-linear oeuvre that readily lends itself to the mix-and-match game of curating.
CROW
Archival Print on Fuji Paper 4” x 6”
SWABLI
Archival Print on Fuji Paper 4.5” x 12”
FUNERAL
Archival Print on Fuji Paper 4.5” x 12”
LAILI IN RED, ON PHONE
Archival Print on Fuji Paper 4” x 6”
HYDERABAD HOUSE
Archival Print on Fuji Paper 12” x 18”
AMBER AND MEHREEN
Archival Print on Fuji Paper 3.5” x 5”
SABRA
Archival Print on Fuji Paper 5� x 7
Satrang Gallery Asma Rashid Khan - Director Zahra Khan - Curator Schezre Syed- Gallery Assistant
satrang.ish@serena.com.pk |
facebook.com/SatrangGallery | UAN: 111-133-133 EXT: 5234
Design & Produced @ TOPICAL (info@topicalprinters.com)