Rana Begum: The space between.

Category Welded mesh

rana-begum-parasol-exhibition

Begum's artworks and installations take inspiration from the geometric patterns associated with Islamic art and architecture – "I grew up reading the Quran and praying five times a day, so that repetitiveness is instilled in me," she explains – and from contemporary cityscapes: "the clashes of colours, forms, and the way the light changes things."

Begum uses different scales and materials to experiment with the way shapes interact to change the viewer's perspective. "People are always trying to find some kind of narrative [to my works]," says Begum, "but the initial response I want is to the colour, the light, the form – not to me." Unrelated to gender, religion and culture, her pieces exist in splendid isolation.

Her use of robust, industrial materials is often at odds with the ethereal lightness and fragility embodied in her works, a dichotomy that is ever present in her practice. Begum's works bring together moments of calm and exhilaration, their open-endedness allowing the viewer a sense of the infinite. In a new large-scale installation No. 670, 2016, created especially for this exhibition, sections of industrial steel-mesh fencing are arranged in a massive maze-like structure that invites visitors to walk through it and physically experience the sense of infinity bound within the geometric repetition of its architectural configurations.

 

Watch the video to see Rana introduce her work.