What's Up - Your guide to what's happening in Fayetteville, AR this week!
Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/1473357
JULY 17-23, 2022 WHAT'S UP! 9 Shabana Kauser is featured in this photo alongside her painting "Dupatta #1." Her work is on exhibition in a solo show until Sept. 11 at the Fort Smith Regional Art Museum. (Courtesy Photo) "I have several works that I finished in time and especially for this exhibition," Shabana Kauser says. "One of the portraits, created in oils, includes a yellow dupatta and a yellow background. The painting is titled 'Dupatta #8.' My model is a South Asian immigrant from India; she lives in Northwest Arkansas. I loved her energy and passion for fabrics. I enjoyed working with her, and learning about her journey to the U.S. I am pleased with the finished painting, and proud to include this portrait here." (Courtesy Image) "Ustad" is an oil painting featuring a portrait of woman in a white dupatta with gold trim and traditional jewelry. The word "Ustad" translates to "teacher" in Urdu and the Hindi language, Kauser says. (Courtesy Image) "During the pandemic, I decided to invest time in learning a new medium and creating a new type of art to add to my overall body of work," Kauser says. "My mixed media abstract art, known as the 'Shine Heart' series, is created from various materials, including South Asian fabrics, acrylic, gold leaf and epoxy resin." It is included in the Fort Smith Regional Art Museum exhibition. (Courtesy Photo) "I am proud to keep fighting for my work, for it to be seen in venues where I am underrepresented," says Kauser. "That's one of the main reasons this solo museum exhibition, with my artwork on the side of the museum for the community to see makes a significant difference to many." (Courtesy Photo) and aiming at opportunities that seem unattainable." But Kauser also embraces the opportunity to be "a living female artist of color." "Female artists represent a small percentage of works shown in museums and top tier galleries," she explains. "The number of artists of color present in that sector of the arts is also low. Now imagine, being female and South Asian, that percentage is even lower. I am proud to keep fighting for my work, for it to be seen in venues where I am underrepresented." That's why, even though she been fortunate to have had a number of solo exhibitions in galleries across the United States since she introduced her work to the community in 2017, having the chance at her first solo museum exhibition at the Fort Smith Regional Art Museum "is a proud moment not just for me, but for family, friends, collectors and a number of communities that have been supporting my work from the early days," she says. "Over the past few weeks, I've had a number of artists, from all backgrounds, approach me and let me know how proud they were. They were pleased to see my first solo museum exhibition and a name that typically wouldn't been seen or heard of in the arts. A South Asian, living, female artist, showing her work in a museum. "I [also] like hearing how my work is enjoyed by visitors. Everyone absorbs and appreciates art so differently," Kauser muses. "Visits from groups of school children are some of the best; for some of them it's the first time they have seen paintings of women from the South Asian culture. They have questions, love the colors, enjoy looking at the artwork up close and more. "Being a Pakistani women in America, where I can express myself through my art, so far has been very powerful. Each one of the stories behind my work has a universal message of strength, courage, determination, uncertainty, belonging and acceptance. That resonates with people regardless of their gender or background."