Afloat
Artist: Shahzia Sikander (Pakistani, born 1969)
Publisher: Diane Villani Editions
Date: 2001
Dimensions:
(Sheet) H: 34 5/8 in. (87.9 cm); W: 23 15/16 in. (60.8 cm)
Medium: Screen print on Thai Mulberry paper.
Place of Origin: Brooklyn, New York
Classification: Prints
Credit Line: Carl B. Spitzer Fund
Object number: 2004.72
Label Text:The silhouetted forms of a palm tree and two female figures seem to “float” in delicate layers of translucent tissue paper that simultaneously veil and reveal shapes. Born in Pakistan near the Indian border, Shahzia Sikander became enthralled by the Indian tradition of colorful, elaborately decorative miniature painting that flourished under Muslim rule from the 1500s to the1800s. She mastered its labor-intensive technique and adapted it to her own art, more recently transforming her precisely rendered forms into more abstract and loose patterns.
Raised Muslim but exposed to Christianity, Judaism, and Hinduism, Sikander grew up intrigued by her nation’s cultural diversity and the issues of identity it raised. She has related her female figures to a hybrid goddess archetype inspired not only by many-armed Hindu deities like Durga and Kali, but also such Western fairytale characters as Rapunzel and Cinderella. These hybrid figures embody the cultural contradictions and similarities that fascinate Sikander, particularly as they relate to women.
Raised Muslim but exposed to Christianity, Judaism, and Hinduism, Sikander grew up intrigued by her nation’s cultural diversity and the issues of identity it raised. She has related her female figures to a hybrid goddess archetype inspired not only by many-armed Hindu deities like Durga and Kali, but also such Western fairytale characters as Rapunzel and Cinderella. These hybrid figures embody the cultural contradictions and similarities that fascinate Sikander, particularly as they relate to women.
Not on view
In Collection(s)