Just as a literary piece is convincing when there is congruity and flow in the writing, along with interesting ideas, visual works of art become more engaging when they have a nice balance, rhythm and direction, along with a sincere thought process. This is how I relate my formal compositions with that of the literal and lyrical writings, rearranged and restructured symbols become simple lines and shapes.
As a visual artist, I do not follow the rules of any language; my intention is to reconstruct the thought process. Therefore, the text becomes self-contained and dynamic visual objects, whether borrowed from works of great poets and philosophers, or from the novel Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland or from a common phrase. Although viewers may recognize familiar letters, words, or symbols from a particular language, the words in those artworks become indecipherable. My objective in choosing specific words is to show the essence of their message through abstraction, the overlapping of shapes and lines create tension and movement stirring up emotions.
Simeen Farhat’s installations take their origins from the calligraphic legacy of South Asia and the Middle East as well as English. The deconstructed text, based on Urdu, Persian and English poetry, saturated with spirituality, morphs into a sensory experience as Farhat manipulates its form and structure. The shadows cast on the wall are also vital to the aesthetic as they add additional depth and layers behind their meaning. Her goal is to translate their poetic dynamism into visual energy.
Pentimenti Gallery features content driven Contemporary Art which challenges traditional materials and aesthetics by a line of internationally established artists alongside young talent. Over time, the exhibition program has broadened to encompass abstract and figurative aesthetics to innovative works created from unconventional materials (packaging tape, marine vinyl, embroidered x-rays, etc.). Throughout two decades, Pentimenti Gallery has maintained a commitment to process based work and elaborate craftsmanship.
All images © the artist and Pentimenti Gallery