Tackling the issue of non-existence of existing souls Ramla Fatima explored human senses of the people left behind searching their loved ones disappear without a trace in thin air. Titled "Hiatus" the solo exhibition of digital prints on canvas at Sanat Gallery, Karachi addressed the sensitive topic of missing persons.
The agony and pain of waiting for someone to return alive, hale and hearty was portrayed by the artist in a flaky style. The images on the canvas were blurred like blurred memories of the suffering families. Only photographs were the source of relief for a moment. The foggy faces depicted long time of absence. Such a long time metamorphosed their real faces in to shadows. The people who know them personally began to forget their real self and their silhouettes lurk in shadows in their homes.
These people lie hidden from the eyes of people but in the heart and memories of their families while others forget them. They escape the attention of people who once interact with them in office, in street or in family gatherings. These unseen souls question the society for their presence. They want to live a life they used to live. The peace of mind and tranquillity of soul has become rare for the families as each passing day their hope dies and each coming day brings more hope to them and they start living on hope day after day.
The abstract compositions of Ramla's prints in blood red, royal blue, grassy green and neon colours attracted the viewers. The theme of the prints was serious but the loud colours were used to emphasise on the theme; thus indicating stress and urgency to address the issue on war footings.
"In my recent body of work found and staged images with the names, features and indications of missing Pakistani citizens are subject to intense re-working through an arbitrary combination of digital manipulation, collage and a diversity of printing process; the visual information build and layered to achieve highly structured chaos."
"The work shows a sensitive understanding of forgotten histories and personalities which seem to evaporate in big cities like Karachi. I tend to leave the viewer in suspense about what is truly happening or about what the future has in store. I explore and represent what most people keep conceal or keep in wraps," she said in a statement.
The artworks presented a case of human nature, as the people are visually absent they started to loose their identity in the society. In a few prints she disclosed some secrets while in others she unfolded the misconceptions and talked about common people's perceptions about this specific issue.
She wanted people to face reality, because the families who suffered do not easily give up. It is a matter of love and affection. How can the families forget their love ones? It is a natural bond that cannot be broken easily. The artworks portrayed experiences and feelings symbolically in some prints. The empty windows, a pigeon, tangled wires and rusty window grills all showed the moments of waiting as the time passed by the families became much older than their age. She discussed the toll of agony and time. They loose their patience after some time again gather energy and start following the ray of hope. People became memories as they live in the minds of their families but not in front of them. They are physically absent but alive in memories.
Ramla also brought out her own sentiments on the matter by using layers in mix media in her prints. She delineated the feelings of fear and hope side by side. These cases are like mysteries waiting to be solved. Or a miracle is hoped by the families that bring their dear ones back.
In some of her prints she used phrases and words to emphasise on the subject as the ambiance and composition of the prints may not reveal directly the theme she wanted to discuss. Her artworks were the renditions of missing person's families' emotions and experiences. Her moral sensibilities let her produce these prints that reflected her own as well as the suffered ones sentiments. Her prints showed empathy and sympathy at the same time. It means she was able to describe not only her feeling but also others in a single print.
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