In the heart of the Art Gallery of NSW Birds in Far Pavilions the first major solo exhibition Nusra Latif Qureshi, offers a profound exploration of identity, history, and transformation. With over 100 works spanning three decades, the exhibition weaves intricate narratives, blending traditional techniques with contemporary themes.
Nusra Latif Qureshi A Woman Between Worlds
At the center of the exhibition’s opening room is Descriptions of past II (2001), a striking painting depicting a woman standing firm, her gaze fixed on the horizon. Flanked by two golden orbs, she appears suspended between past and future, holding both worlds in balance. Clad in a pink salwar kameez, the figure radiates quiet defiance, asserting her presence beyond the viewer’s interpretation. Created during Qureshi’s migration from Lahore to Melbourne, this piece encapsulates the complexities of navigating cultural shifts without succumbing to clichés of division.
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A Recurring Muse
This enigmatic woman reappears throughout the exhibition, taking on various forms and roles. In Gardens of desire II (2022), she channels the goddess Radha, embracing her absent lover Krishna, whose presence is symbolized by an orange silhouette. In Justified behavioural sketch (2002), she sits dreamily on a tasseled platform beneath an outline of polo players, a poignant nod to colonial histories. Each piece offers glimpses into her richly layered interior world, where personal and collective histories intertwine.
Reviving Mughal Traditions
Qureshi’s artistic foundation lies in musavari, a Persian-inspired form of miniature painting that flourished in Mughal courts. Studying at Lahore’s National College of Arts, she mastered this meticulous technique, often associated with grandeur and masculinity. Qureshi reclaims this tradition, using it to tell quieter, deeply personal stories. Her work challenges the colonial notion that size determines significance, inviting viewers to engage deeply and return for closer inspection.
History Through a Personal Lens
The exhibition delves into seismic historical events, starting with the Partition of 1947, a cataclysmic moment that split India and Pakistan. Early watercolour-and-ink works from 1994 reflect this rupture, blending contemporary scenes with motifs from epic poems. Qureshi extends this dialogue in Museum of lost memories (2024), a new installation that juxtaposes personal objects like a typewriter and turban ornament with colonial-era photographs and religious statues. This interplay questions the value we assign to history while emphasizing the importance of individual experience.
A Fusion of Timelines
In Qureshi’s hands, past and present converge seamlessly. Her art rejects Western painting’s fixation on linear perspective, instead capturing time as a fluid, layered entity. Works like Desires of memory 1-8 (2012) reinterpret family photographs, overlaying them with floral imagery inspired by Mughal emperor Jehangir’s love of nature. These delicate pieces evoke both nostalgia and renewal, bridging the personal with the universal.
History as Living Material
The exhibition concludes with Did you come here to find history (2009), an installation blending Qureshi’s passport photos with portraits of Mughal kings. Originally created for the Venice Biennale, this piece underscores history as a dynamic, evolving force shaped by our gaze and understanding.
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Birds in Far Pavilions is more than an exhibition; it’s an invitation to reflect on the intersections of culture, memory, and identity. Qureshi’s work encourages us to see history not as a static record but as a living, breathing narrative that transforms with each encounter.
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