ART FACTS: Traditional disciplinary boundaries

An exhibition titled "Beneath the Surface" portrayed vivid imaginations of emerging artists about traditional disciplinary boundaries in our society in their paintings, sculptures and mixed media works at Canvas Gallery, Karachi. Thus the new generation of artists experiencing and reinterpreting their attitude, identity, environment, tastes, sexualities and political learning through their artworks. The participants were the alumni of the National College of Arts (NCA), Lahore and the Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture (IVSAA), Karachi.
Artists focused on the human figures and body structures to portray their themes. The images used by the artists were taken from their surroundings. Some paintings were composed of objects from still life while others presented figures in isolation. Overall compositions with figures and objects and other physical forms like flowers and bees in their respective frames established a narrative for the viewers.
Some artists have chosen soft colours while others used bold and bright colours to interpret their views and represent their subject of interest in their works naturally. Artists seemed to find answers to their questions which they had in their minds by revealing them on their canvases and in sculptures.
Fatima Shajia wanted to cover what was missed by other people in a glance in her sculptures. People see what visually appear in front of their eyes but when a person is no more in this world or at a certain specific place for a long time his/her footprints left behind for the loved ones to remember them from these impressions that left a mark on different things in their surrounding and they seemed as if part of life of other people who loved them.
Haya Zaidi struck the sensitive cord in people's life that is joined with their basics of life like hope renewal and religious code of conduct that everybody has to follow. She portrayed her themes of feminism and mysticism with a blend of symbols in contemporary settings.
Marjan Bani Asadi has chosen carpets and rugs as a subject to represent human lives as these rugs and carpets are witnessed to the lives of people because they are used as decoration in homes. They not only depicted the culture of the people they also reflect their lives and thus reveals and hide certain stories.
Mohsin Shaikh tried to create awareness about literacy in our society. He symbolically used chalk, blackboard and classroom to represent education importance. But he said that everybody literate or illiterate they know the truths of society and they talk about it also but unable to implement it.
Rabia Farooqui used gestures and objects to present everyday situations and peoples thought about it. Her compositions translate her views. She showed how our contradicting thoughts because of society standards affect our actions.
Rabia S Akhtar painted fantasy world depicting memories, fairy tales, nostalgia and historic facts. She combined her personal thoughts with reality to achieve something new and exciting. Her curiosity took her to a wonderland full of imaginary tales.
Rahim Baloch very carefully expressed feelings of love, longing and desire mixed with solitude, loneliness and nostalgia in the form of bees and their honeycomb. These little cute creatures are symbol of hard work and beauty as they collect nectar from flowers and form honey.
Suleman Faisal discussed the idea of seeing things with naked eye but otherwise the reality was different in his sculptures. He wanted to break boundaries and create realism with subtle and bold forms.