Body is the Canvas

Wearable art by Masooma Syed.

A man and a woman stand facing each other at the edge of a utility knife, as if on a seesaw. Designed as a ring that can be worn, this is Pakistani artist Masooma Syed’s portrayal of fragile relationships. In one of the small, quiet and dimly-lit rooms in Khoj Studios are many such tiny wearable art sculptures displayed on grey cement bricks. With her new body of work titled “Mountains to Mosque and Other Details”, Syed proves that art can be worn as jewellery.

Among the 30 objects on display is a metallic pendant, where flowers bloom from a stem, shining like white pearls. Lahore-born Syed says, “The flowers are made from human nails. It questions what is precious and non-precious. Jewellery is often made using precious stones and the materials I have used are considered dirty and unclean parts of our body.” Syed deliberately uses human nails, old perfume bottles and used paper with precious and semi-precious stones. The medium, she says, becomes her message. “I treat my jewellery as sculptures that touch your body and become a part of your skin. Body is the canvas in jewellery making,” says the 42-year-old artist, who now lives between New Delhi and Pakistan. “I try to push the boundaries of jewellery, like the flatness associated with it, and try to give it a 3D form,” she says.  The exhibition is on display at Khoj Studios, S-17, Khirkee Extension till May 10 from 11 am to 6.30 pm.
Contact: 29545274

Pallavi Chattopadhyay