Silhouettes of Percipience

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Sadaf has synchronized the viewer’s perception with her own individual idiom of expression

 

Since the early years of art in Pakistan, many female painters have earned respect and repute for their creativity, vision, perseverance and hard-work. The field of visual arts has always been considered more relevant to the woman for their instinctive aptitude towards aesthetics. Amrita Shergil, Zubeda Agha, Anna Molka Ahmad, Anwar Afzal, Naseem H. Qazi, Razzia Feroz, Zakia Mallick Sheikh, Jamila Zaidi, Abbasi Akhtar Abidi and Tasneem Mazhar are few names who provided a solid platform for primary patterns of art in Pakistan.

In the beginning, artists of Pakistan were striving for the individual and recognized skill and style in modern and traditional techniques of the visual arts. Later, especially after the eventful seventies and restricted eighties, our artists started to ponder on the psychological, social and anthropological issues. Many young painters used the female figure as a medium to explore the hidden or unspoken feelings and emotions contrary to the apparent contours of the female body that has been exploited, in numerous expressions of visuals and rituals in terms of centuries-old accepted allegory, as a symbol of sensuality and eroticism.

Sadaf Naeem belongs to the younger lot of painters who have used the female figure as a metaphor to investigate and represent the emotional and spiritual aspect of human life. In recent times, she has given expression to her thoughts through the silhouettes of female bodies and faces under the transparently textured and skillfully rendered, favourably in white, veils or curtains.

In this journey of depicting the non-tangible through the tangible objects, rendered along with symbols, normally extracted out of the surroundings she lives in and the culture she belongs to, Sadaf has synchronized the viewer’s perception with her own individual idiom of expression.

Sadaf is an NCA graduate and the wife of renowned figurative artist R.M. Naeem. The likelihood of possible inspirations or influences from the other artist at home cannot be ignored. However, Sadaf seems groping for her individuality and recognition by adopting different styles, techniques and mediums. She has over the years experimented with her technique by painting her canvases in oil-colours, acrylics and stamping or screen-printing over the painted areas to attain the textural quality; that has become a unique feature of her style.On the other hand, one cannot deny the fact that the subject matter or themes related to the spiritual philosophy and ideology seem inspired by the surname she has, which sometimes, causes her figures to look static and somehow passive in their postures.

Being from fragile gender, Sadaf uses the motifs and patterns symbolically. The rendering, of the hanging or stretched cloth or clothes, is very womanly and represents the painter’s understanding towards the socio-cultural textile patterns. This feature is very indigenous and feminine i its own quality and feel.

Sadaf describes her painting approach as: “In my paintings metaphysical, definite and indefinite presence of different objects tells the story about our society and myself. It’s more about the relationship between space and illusion.”

Sadaf Naeem seems to expand her discernment to the outer-shells of the human conscience where individual psychology and unintentional imagination can capture the sublime percipience.

It is often observed that after attaining the skills of realistic rendering, artists tend to put their hands on conceptual or thematic painting. Pablo Picasso is an authentic example of this doctrine while in our own homeland; Sadequain could be presented in this category. Gulgee and Saeed Akhtar also preferred the stylization over realism in their later phase of painting. R.M. Naeem is another master in this category who after being applauded as a realistic draftsman adopted the metaphorical expression within his expression, especially concerning mysticism.

Sadaf is comparatively a novice in this style, but her conviction and commitment towards her observations of the mystical doctrine do not give the impression of an amateur. She, over the years, has tried to create a relationship between the metaphysical and physical world. In this journey of depicting the non-tangible through the tangible objects, rendered along with symbols normally extracted out of the surroundings she lives in and the culture she belongs to, Sadaf has synchronized the viewer’s perception with her own individual idiom of expression.

This can be the reason that the emblems she applies consist of transparent or see-through dupattas (a kind of long scarf that South Asian women wore normally to cover their heads or to use it as a veil), flowery cloaks or pelisses and imprints of traditional patterns. She also implies fragile leafs or petals against the solidity of an unyielding wall or the delicate and ornate drape.

Art in Pakistan, especially in the 21st century, has extended its perimeters to the contemporary universal trends whereas during the last quarter of the 20th century, Pakistani art and artists evolved against unfavourable circumstances and hostile government policies.

With all this symbolism and metaphysical approach, Sadaf Naeem seems to expand her discernment to the outer-shells of the human conscience where individual psychology and unintentional imagination can capture the sublime percipience.

Art in Pakistan, especially in the 21st century, has extended its perimeters to the contemporary universal trends whereas during the last quarter of the 20th century, Pakistani art and artists evolved against unfavourable circumstances and hostile government policies. The political adversity and global changes ignited the artists to grope new ideas and themes. It provided a solid platform to the 21st century-generation artists to experiment in terms of technique, style, theme and concept. Sadaf represents that very generation.