Aisha Khalid: I Am And I Am Not
01 Apr - 16 Jul 2023
A comprehensive retrospective of the work of Pakistani artist Aisha Khalid, I Am And I Am Not presents more than 40 of the artist’s works dating from 1993 to the present day. Proudly supported by Craigs Investment Partners.
Acclaimed Pakistani artist Aisha Khalid brings her work to Aotearoa for the first time.
Khalid’s exhibition of bold and unapologetic artworks address post-colonial hierarchies, and have gained international recognition as a powerful means of challenging western narratives and encouraging audiences to approach and understand world events through eastern points of view.
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Aisha Khalid, I Am And I Am Not, 2021 (detail), gold and silver plated steel pins, velvet coat and shawl, courtesy of the artist. Photo: Cheska Brown.
Aisha Khalid, I Am And I Am Not, 2021 (detail), gold and silver plated steel pins, velvet coat and shawl, courtesy of the artist. Photo: Cheska Brown.
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Aisha Khalid, I Am And I Am Not, 2017, installation view, gold-plated steel pins on gilded canvas, 2-channel digital video, 06:34, courtesy of the artist. Photo: Cheska Brown.
Aisha Khalid, I Am And I Am Not, 2017, installation view, gold-plated steel pins on gilded canvas, 2-channel digital video, 06:34, courtesy of the artist. Photo: Cheska Brown.
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Aisha Khalid, I Am And I Am Not, 2017, installation view, gold-plated steel pins on gilded canvas, 2-channel digital video, 06:34, courtesy of the artist. Detail. Photo: Cheska Brown.
Aisha Khalid, I Am And I Am Not, 2017, installation view, gold-plated steel pins on gilded canvas, 2-channel digital video, 06:34, courtesy of the artist. Detail. Photo: Cheska Brown.
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Aisha Khalid, The Garden of Love Is Green Without Limit, 2019, steel pins, 24-carat gold-plated steel pins, velvet, metal, gouache, gold leaf on paperboard, courtesy of the artist. Photo: Cheska Brown.
Aisha Khalid, The Garden of Love Is Green Without Limit, 2019, steel pins, 24-carat gold-plated steel pins, velvet, metal, gouache, gold leaf on paperboard, courtesy of the artist. Photo: Cheska Brown.
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Aisha Khalid, Two Worlds As One, 2016, detail, gold and silver plated pins on velvet and camouflage fabric, courtesy of the artist. Photo: Cheska Brown.
Aisha Khalid, Two Worlds As One, 2016, detail, gold and silver plated pins on velvet and camouflage fabric, courtesy of the artist. Photo: Cheska Brown.
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Aisha Khalid, I Am And I Am Not, Govett-Brewster Art Gallery, 2023. Photo: Cheska Brown.
Aisha Khalid, I Am And I Am Not, Govett-Brewster Art Gallery, 2023. Photo: Cheska Brown.
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Aisha Khalid, I Am And I Am Not, 2021 (detail), gold and silver plated steel pins, velvet coat and shawl, courtesy of the artist. Photo: Cheska Brown.
Aisha Khalid, I Am And I Am Not, 2021 (detail), gold and silver plated steel pins, velvet coat and shawl, courtesy of the artist. Photo: Cheska Brown.
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Left: Aisha Khalid, I Am And I Am Not, 2019, gouache, gold and silver leaf on paperboard; Right: I Am And I Am Not, 2020, gouache, gold and silver lead on paperboard, courtesy of the artist. Photo: Cheska Brown.
Left: Aisha Khalid, I Am And I Am Not, 2019, gouache, gold and silver leaf on paperboard; Right: I Am And I Am Not, 2020, gouache, gold and silver lead on paperboard, courtesy of the artist. Photo: Cheska Brown.
Formally trained in Indo-Persian miniature painting traditions from the National College of Arts, Lahore, Khalid completed post-graduate study at the Rijksakademie in Amsterdam.
Having experienced a forced migration from her farmlands in Sindh to urban Punjab at a young age, the geometric patterns that form the basis of her artistic language are directly inspired by the floor tiles of her childhood home. This repeated allusion to the loss of loved land places Khalid’s work within contemporary contexts of colonization and displacement in many parts of the world today.
Extending her work beyond the confines of the two-dimensional wasli – a handmade paper used for miniature paintings - Khalid has widened her practice to include three dimensional forms, video and in-situ installations, performance art, and interactive work with sound installations. Elaborate tapestries, formed with common pins, are allegorical investigations into the dichotomies between East and West.
The exhibition I Am And I Am Not has been curated by Masuma Halai Khwaja, a curator and art educator based in Karachi, and will show at the Govett-Brewster Art Gallery in New Plymouth from 1 April 2023 – 16 July 2023.
