KARACHI: Some of us believe that perception has a greater impact than reality. There are others who think it`s the other way round, provided we don`t take reality as something that can only appeal to our Eve senses. It is in this scheme of things that consciousness plays an important role. The fascinating tussle between what`s real and what`s imagined can be seen in an exhibition of Ayessha Quraishi`s latest body of work titled Open Presence that commenced at the Koel art gallery on Thursday evening.It is obvious that Ayessha has a penchant for talking less and saying more.
There`s certain mystique around her artworks. The artist speaks in a soft voice.
But the softness is not meant to obfuscate, rather it allows the viewer to gradually travel with her train of thought. The piece `A word of love in the shape of burning awareness, I offer` (011 on paper) is a testimony to it. The offer has to be accepted.
With the `Touching blind, inside out` series (oil and pigment on paper), the journey becomes clearer. It is the tactile aspect of things (read: living beings) that the artist is trying to explore. The words touch and blind go together.However, there is an implied sense of something more than that that needs to be tapped into.
The show reaches climax, it appears, with the `In the absolute presence of a distant light` series (oil on paper). This is where the viewer sees an interesting contrast between light and darkness.
The concept is not dealt with in the conventional sense of light and dark. The striking scene that the artist creates makes the two contrasting shades look like mutually reinforcing, and not exclusive. Whether it is a healthy sign or a foreboding one is for the viewer to decide.
