I am so pleased to be exhibiting with a group of nine other artists in I Contain Multitudes, on view through March 9, 2019, at the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
The paintings, drawings, mixed media objects and installations from 10 artists from diverse heritage and artistic backgrounds invite viewers to examine how multiculturalism and navigating between different social norms affects the artists, as well as how it relates to the issues of immigration and diversity in our contemporary society. The work of the artists explores living a multicultural life and examines concepts of cultural negotiation, memory and nostalgia. The artists’ work showcases juxtapositions of visual languages, cultural icons or symbolism and gender inequalities.
The exhibition is curated by Nina Ghanbarzadeh. In addition to Ghanbarzadeh, artists featured include:
- Hend Al-Mansour, a former cardiologist from Saudi Arabia, she now makes prints in Minneapolis.
- Painter and mapmaker Susan Armington lives in Minneapolis and spent time teaching in Japan.
- Visual artist Nida Bangash, born in Iran and raised in Pakistan, creates miniatures in McKinney, Texas.
- Roya Farassat, an Iranian painter/sculptor, lives and creates in New York City.
- Farida Hughes, an American abstract artist of Asian-Indian/American descent, explores community engagement and movement in her mixed media work.
- Fawzia Khan, a Pakistani-American abstract artist born in Nigeria and living in Minneapolis, works in the visual arts after a career in obstetrics/gynecology.
- Ifrah Mansour was born in Saudi Arabia and raised in Somalia, Kenya and the United States. The Muslim Somali refugee is now a multimedia artist and educator in Minnesota.
- Kimberlee Joy Roth, a former physics and science teacher who has spent time in several European countries and Israel, is a ceramic artist living in Minneapolis.
- Helen Zughaib, a native of Beirut, Lebanon, currently lives and works in Washington, D.C.
The exhibition is generously supported in part by the Mary L. Nohl Fund of the Greater Milwaukee Foundation.
Image above: From “I Contain Multitudes”, installation view of “Blends” paintings by Farida Hughes. Image courtesy of MIAD.