A response to BlackFlash’s Fall/Winter issue “Infinities.”
Yasmeen Nematt Alla
Yasmeen Nematt Alla (she/her) is an Egyptian artist and art worker living in Tkaronto, Ontario. Her practice approaches alienated narratives from an interpreter’s perspective. As someone who lives between cultures, she deciphers language barriers attached to alienation and otherness. She wonders how the translation of language, experiences, and visuals intertwine with care, grief, and community building.
Reflecting on the tenacity of her grandmother, Yasmeen Nematt Alla discusses ritual, connection to land, family work, and housekeeping of the self through the multidisciplinary work of South Asian Muslim Canadian artist, Farheen HaQ.
‘Infinities’ brings together a range of Canadian artists and writers to examine the influence of the traditions and conventions of Islamic visual cultures on contemporary art. From techniques and symbols to concepts and designs, artists such as Tazeen Qayyum, Abdi Osman, Shaheer Zazai, Azadeh Elmizadeh, and Jamelie Hassan have employed various methods and materials to not only show the ways in which Islamic visual cultures continues to inform their work, but also the challenges, possibilities and implications in doing so.