Marium Agha's first solo titled 'But, My Dear, This Is Not Wonderland and You Are Not Alice' at Chawkandi Art gallery, Karachi touched the notions of love. Her body of work was wrapped up in a fairy tale. She un wrapped the story in her paintings so the viewers can understand her point of view about the subject that many in our society do not want to discuss openly.
For some 'Love' is a magic word that could change ones life and for some it is a hushed up topic not to be discussed frankly. That's why she has chosen this subject to clear some misconceptions and perceptions in the minds of common people regarding the subject.
Marium Agha completed her Bachelor's degree from the Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture in 2006 and a Master's in Fine Art from the University of the Art's London, Central Saint Martin's in 2009. She developed a keen interest in Curating Contemporary Art Exhibition and completed a course at the Chelsea College of Arts and Design, London, in 2010 after which she curated her first show in her home town, Karachi showcasing artist from India, China, Taiwan and Pakistan, titled, 'Home-page' at Art Chowk Gallery, Karachi.
She interpreted concepts and theories that outlined our cultural norms and ideals of living a life for ourselves and others also in mix media through her visual vocabulary. The imagery in her paintings was representational of things we use and do in our daily life. She tried to capture the real life in her paintings. She dealt with various themes we encounter everyday and just pass by with out noticing the situation as a normal occurrence.
She made her point through drawings on handkerchiefs and video installations. The main theme of her paintings was the concept of love other than cultural ideals of life. In real life the lust is translated as love. In our society man and woman are suppose to love differently. And Marium defy this concept and asks questions regarding the issue in her paintings which she wanted to be answered by the viewers. She used clothes and threads to reflect her feelings because clothes are the most personal thing in use of a person and they are the witness of many events and carry memories and evidences of various experiences.
Her painting represented her own experiences and the practical emotional life of others around her who she observed and heard. Many have abstract ideas about the subject and see it as an irrelevant topic to discuss while others opinions and ideas about the subject was entirely different and they feel it was a sensitive issue which must be addressed.
For some it is a communication gap that created misconceptions about the issue of love and made it a subject of irrelevance. Marium discussed in her paintings that love is not sexuality only or the pleasure of flesh it is something more than these worldly interpretations of the feeling of love.
By sharing her ideas and views about love she wanted to brought about some change in our approach towards the most beautiful and sensitive feeling on earth. Without love world will become hell. Most people have a vague understanding of love. She revealed her understanding of love in her artworks. She incorporated various elements to recreate her story of love. The drawings embroidered on hankerchiefs, the mix media paintings and installations all are reflective of her feelings and experiences which he shared with the viewers.
She narrated different stories of love and lust in her artworks with symbols and nudes. She has chosen a theme which is seemed as social taboo by the majority of society. In August, Marium Agha will hold her first solo in NYC at the Artifact Gallery.nadeemzuberi71@gmail.com