The Sun Always Rises

Galerie ISA is proud to present artist Eeman Masood’s (b.1998, lives & works in British Columbia, Canada) debut solo show ‘The Sun Always Rises.’ As the title of this series suggests, these works reflect a new awakening for the artist. Like for so many, the pandemic forced Masood to slow down, to contemplate, to recalibrate. In the midst of chaos, she looked for an escape and in solitude, Masood found connection—to a sense of self and also to the natural world. In the days and nights that followed, in the rhythm of a rising and setting sun, in the certainty that winter will always be followed by spring, Masood found healing and a renewed sense of optimism in the possibilities of life.

Nature continues to play a starring role in Masood’s work, but this personal evolution, reflects in a new literal and figurative landscape. While previous works were painted exclusively in monochromatic hues of blue, her palette now is reflective of a more meditative state, of the rhythmic order of life, of fresh perspectives of the external world. Set in a mythical universe, as visualized by Masood, the colors flow more naturally. Flowers that were previously withered, blending into the background, are in full bloom, their delicacy imbued with a sense of energy and vitality, illuminating the surroundings.

A graduate of traditional miniature painting, Masood’s work is an exploration of pushing boundaries of the classic form by combining it with contemporary material and techniques. Masood builds colors by developing intense tones—in this series, greens and blues along with shades of yellow and orange—inspired by the rising sun. Using mainly watercolors and gouache paints, Masood creates the time-intensive safeda, removing impurities from poster paint, the remaining pigment mixed with watercolor pigment to make it opaque, further highlighting the palette with the use of delicate 24K pure gold leaf. The techniques of pardakht and tapai involving a thin brush and a build of color through quick brushstrokes, refine the details on air-dried paper and on wasli (traditional hard paper made by sticking several sheets together through a lengthy process).

With these intensely personal works, Masood wishes the viewer experience a similar sense of peace, as one engages with the work. Details are intentionally kept dark and hidden, prompting a closer look, a desire to get lost in this mythical landscape; the works reiterating the essential reminder that even the darkest moments give way to brilliant light.

Priyanka R Khanna