Im very excited about coming back to Delhi, says the Pakistan-born Amna Ilyas who returns after three years for a solo titled Women,Wound,Word at the Seven Art Gallery in Greater Kailash II. The 29-year old artist is a graduate in Fine Arts from National College of Arts,Lahore and currently works as an assistant professor at the college. My first international residency in 2007 was here at the Lalit Kala Academy, she continues. I learned how do metal casting,something that would have been impossible in Pakistan,because of the lack of facilities, says Ilyas who has been part of several group exhibitions in London,Vermont,Mumbai and Delhi,and has been professionally exhibiting her works since 2004. Its taken her almost nine months to construct the current body of work that forms the solo. Like several other Pakistani artists showcasing in India,Ilyas also works with disposable media like glass,acrylic sheets and paper. Her work evokes the sensation of a mood,an abstract idea and plays with light,rather than narrating a story. In one particular 31 x 22 inches piece called Hers,she layers vertical waves of transparent glass sheets on acrylic that create the effect of water ripples reflecting light. In another larger 60 x 24 inches piece,The Veil,light passes through a plastic-glass upwards spiral,twisted in multiple angles like a discarded scarf,and gets refracted several times,creating an overlap of plastic shadows. Sometimes it takes me a week to complete the work,at other times over a month. It depends on how quickly I can materialise what Im thinking, says Ilyas. Her collection emphasises on femininity in art. I have the tendency to rework my pieces several times. I started with 18 pieces but discarded half of them. The current collection has nine of my works, she says. The visible lack of colour and the predominance of white in her artwork reinforce Ilyass views on womanhood. Her works,priced between Rs 45,000 to Rs one lakh,focus on the transparent medium that she likens with womanhood. The exhibition is on till November 4. For details contact: 64640884.
