Working extensively with digital media and exploring the
politics of representation, Pakistani artist Rashid Rana is regarded as one of
the most original contemporary artists in South Asia. Katie Popperwell spoke to
him.
Pakistani artist Rashid Rana’s bold use of digital media and
unique understanding of the politics of representation, has earnt him a
reputation as one of the most original contemporary artists in South Asia.
Known for playing with perceptions and preconceptions, it comes as no surprise
that the crowning glory of his Asia Triennial exhibition delivers a lot more
than first meets the eye.
Desperately Seeking Paradise II is an imposing
three-dimensional photographic sculpture constituting hundreds of images of the
artist’s home town of Lahore, each reflected in a perpendicular triangular
mirror, homogenizing to create a sweeping metropolitan skyline. Typically for
Rana, the sculpture is both seductive and disorientating, forcing the viewer to
confront their preconceptions about what lies behind the big picture and try to
work out exactly where to stand.
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| Rashid Rana in front of Desperately Seeking Paradise |
Is there a relationship between what inspires you to make a
work of art and your use of certain types of media?
Yes, my practice has been mostly idea-led for the last few
years. I was trained as a painter but now I enjoy being categorised as a visual
artist, as that covers the vast array of mediums and approaches. It also has to
do with the fact that I like to have the freedom to shift approaches and styles
as I choose.
If the funds used on the ‘War On Terror’ were used to
develop cultural activities, art colleges and education, the results would be
much more positive.
How does the well-documented social and political turbulence
in Pakistan affect you and your creative practice?
I am much more interested in form and language; my work
could be categorised as being politically overt at times, but I can’t just say
that I am interested in political turbulence. I deal with all sorts of issues,
mostly from my immediate surroundings; it’s not so much about the issues as the
‘representations’ around those concerns that I am interested in. I don’t intend
to make political art but I am interested in the politics of representation,
and I hope my work transcends all the heterogeneous issues that I bring into it
as triggering points.
Lahore is known for being the artistic and cultural hub of
Punjab as well as a religious centre. Are you conscious of a conflict between
these two perspectives?
Lahore is the cultural capital of Pakistan. I don’t think it
is apt to say that it is a religious centre, though it has its share of
intolerance. As an artist there is certainly a conflict between such opposing
perspectives, since where there is intolerance, aspects of art and culture
cannot thrive. But at the same time I feel art and culture is the antidote to
intolerance. I truly believe that if the funds used by the imperialist powers
on the so-called ‘War On Terror’ were used to develop cultural activities, art
colleges and education in general, the results would have been much more
positive, as the problem is economic at its core, not religious.
Art Triennial Manchester focuses on challenging western
preconceptions about Asian artistic practice. To what extent are you aware of
such preconceptions?
I know that the preconceptions about Asian artistic
practices do exist but perhaps less than before. Lack of knowledge about others
often leads to a narrow understanding of their experiences. For example, in the
1990s only the school of neo-miniature (derived from Traditional Indian and
Mughal miniature painting) was recognised or accepted as contemporary Pakistani
art, but now it can be a video installation or a sculpture in a
non-conventional medium. Having said that, there is much to be desired in terms
of developing an understanding of the contexts in which art in the non-western
cultures is being produced.
Your show at the Cornerhouse seems to exhibit a continuing
shift towards formal abstraction and away from pop media influences. Are you
consciously moving towards a minimalist aesthetic?
This is not the first time that I have made works with
minimalist aesthetics. In the earlier part of my career, around the 1990s, I
focused on making conceptual works with a minimalist sensibility, which were
also made to look deceptively abstract as they were not abstract in the sense
we understand ‘abstract art’. In a way, in these recent works I am revisiting
my own work from the past. In both instances, as a whole, I am trying to
negotiate between my interest in the development of art in the West during the
20th century and the experience of my immediate surroundings. Though most
aesthetics like Pop and Minimalism happen in reaction to one another, I try to
make them co-exist in my work. By doing so, I am making the friction and faction
between the two become a part of the work by default. This approach encompasses
my entire practice, and I intend to carry on with this concurrent act of
assimilation and rejection.
This interview was done by Katie Popperwellspoke for
Creativetimes.co.uk in 2011 during Rashid Ranna's exhibition at Conerhouse,
Everything is Happening At Once in the Ambitious Art Triennial Manchester.
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