Next @sanat_initiative “Something Familiar in an Unfamiliar Frame” featuring works by @_kashifahmed @maryam_arslan and…
Next @sanat_initiative “Something Familiar in an Unfamiliar Frame” featuring works by @_kashifahmed @maryam_arslan and @samiyamsheikh opens on Tuesday 29 July
“Khandaanistan” series by Samiya Mahir Sheikh welcomes you to a world where family portraits don’t smile back – they snarl, sulk, preen, and posture. Set against the backdrop of South Asia, particularly Pakistan, where Eid days and weddings are less celebration and more theatre, this exhibit unpacks the gloriously chaotic concept of “family.” Here, animals take center stage – each canvas a mirror, each beast a relative. From the gossiping rooster auntie to the passive-aggressive unmarried uncle, these creatures channel the emotional circus of love, loyalty, dysfunction, and generational baggage. Why do we cling to family? Is it the comfort of shared trauma? The illusion of unbreakable bloodlines? Or just really good biryani? This collection invites you to squint past the surface, to pry into the subconscious soul of our culture. With wit as sharp as a mother-in-law’s glare and irony wrapped in tradition, this is not just a display – it’s a family reunion you didn’t know you were already attending.
