The Past as Present
AAN Art Space & Museum
Karachi, 2018
Oil paint on metal headbands used to shape phetas (Gujarati hats)Paintings on metal armatures used to build Parsi phetas which are ceremonial hats made for men
Men Doing Manly Things (projected), 02m 04s
Still from ‘Men Doing Manly Things’, 02m 04s
Still from ‘Men Doing Manly Things’, 02m 04s
Still from ‘Men Doing Manly Things’, 02m 04s
Screenprint and oil on wooden boxes modelled on cardboard boxes made for phetasArchived photographs of men wearing phetasSymbols and acronyms for businesses specialising in men’s wear and hats
The Past as Present was curated by Aziz Sohail
Utilising family archives and heirlooms, my work touches on aspects of historical costume and tailor made attire. Although dress and extravagance can be associated with the intention of elevating a man’s status, can costumes be seen as a way to dissuade a larger narrative on patriachal settings?
There is a tendency for wealthy communities dwelling in post colonial cities, to elevate their sons into model human beings; they are the ultimate investment of the family and are heirs to both the materialistic and intangible legacies of their community. Although each may may have his own pursuits, dreams and his fair share of failures, this particular ‘type’ of man
is always bestowed with the birth right to conquer.
Replicating boxes which encase phetas (i.e. a Gujarati term for a ceremonial or status-worthy hat for men), the film and installation explore cross-border portayals of patriachy and how sons are boxed and categorized.
Metal bands were used as casts and made upon specific measurements of a man’s head to create Parsi ‘phetas’. A Gujarati pheta is a traditional Parsi hat which was and is still worn by men of prominence and stature, especially for auspicious occasions. In painting photographs of iconic monuments on these bands, these visuals casts assert an oversaturated narrative of the need to plunder and succeed through an aspiration of a glorious past.