Ali Kazim

Ali Kazim (b.1979, Pattoki. Lives and works in Lahore) creates layered, textured watercolours and ink drawings, primarily of desolate landscapes and figures in isolation. His meticulous brushwork draws upon miniature painting techniques, capturing the finest details, for instance individual strands of hair. Kazim treats landscapes with the same forensic finesse and considers the ancient civilisations that once flourished in Pakistan. Deploying an archaeological approach, he documents ruins and uses clay to create objects seemingly excavated from long-buried cities.
Kazim received his BFA from the National College of Arts, Lahore in 2002 and a MFA from the Slade School of Fine Art, London in 2011. He is Assistant Professor at the National College of Arts, Lahore.
His work has been exhibited widely in solo and group shows internationally, including: The Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology, Oxford (forthcoming 2021 with residency in 2020); Lahore Biennale 02, Lahore (2020); COMO Museum of Art, Lahore (2019); Karachi Biennale, Karachi (2019); 9th Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art, Brisbane (2018); Lahore Biennale 01, Lahore (2018); Karachi Biennale, Karachi (2017); Office of Contemporary Art Norway, Oslo (2016); Hinterland Galerie, Vienna (2016); Dhaka Art Summit, Dhaka (2016); Seoul Arts Centre, Hangaram Arts Museum, Seoul (2016/2015); Centre for Contemporary Art Ujazdowski Castle, Warsaw (2015)
Ali Kazim’s work forms part of many public collections, including British Museum, London; Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; Queensland Art Gallery, Brisbane; Victoria and Albert Museum, London.

JHAVERI CONTEMPORARY

Jhaveri Contemporary presents a video and suite of drawings by British-Indian artist Hardeep Pandhal. Pandhal works predominantly with drawing and voice to transform feelings of disinheritance and disaffection into generative spaces that bolster interdependence and self-belief. Applying practices of associative thinking, delivered via rap and elliptical wordplay through the visual language of ‘gutter media’ such as comics and video games, his research-led projects exhibit syncretic strains of post-brown weirdness. Across media, his works are imbued with acerbity and playful complexity, at once confrontational and reflective.

About the Gallery

Jhaveri Contemporary was formed in 2010 by sisters Amrita and Priya with an eye towards representing artists, across generations and nationalities, whose work is informed by South Asian connections and traditions. The gallery’s dedication to original scholarship, engendered through its carefully crafted shows, is one of the many ways it distinguishes itself. Entwined with this philosophy is another guiding principle: showcasing the heterogeneous practices of long-celebrated luminaries as well as emerging talents, often in generously interrogative conversations. With a focus on mining lesser-known art histories, Jhaveri Contemporary facilitates dialogue between artists, curators and historians to add to the wider field of art. Estates served by the gallery include Mohan Samant, Mrinalini Mukherjee, Anwar Jalal Shemza.

Amrita and Priya have produced landmark projects such as Anish Kapoor’s first-ever public exhibition in India in 2010. The sisters are published authors and, in 2005, they collaborated on the seminal guidebook, 101: A Guide to 101 Modern and Contemporary Indian artists. Jhaveri Contemporary’s gallery space in Mumbai is on the third floor of a heritage building which overlooks the iconic Gateway of India from its balconies.