Zara Asgher

Biography

Artist Statement

Zara Asgher visual artist and educator from Lahore, Pakistan, currently living and practicing in  Finland. She graduated from the National College of Arts, Lahore, in 2011. She was awarded the  prize for the 10 Best Works of the Young Artists Exhibition, Day After Tomorrow in 2012, by the  Punjab Arts Council, Pakistan. Asgher has participated in group shows nationally and  internationally. She was awarded a full scholarship to pursue an M.A. in Nordic Visual Studies  and Art Education at Aalto University, Finland. She has worked on art educational programmes  with the Espoo Museum of Modern Art and the Finnish Museum of Photography.

Displayed with us in 'The Spark'

Merry-Go-Round
2022
Etching 
16 x 16 inches

Zara Asgher's practice is influenced by the themes of gender and sexuality and their relationship  with their cities. We use the term ‘public spaces’ when in fact not all spaces render themselves  accessible to certain genders or groups of people. She questions who makes up these places and  the ways in which abstract notions of power that govern the outdoors, play out.  
We are instructed to perform and interact with each other in public spaces in certain mannerisms.  In Pakistan, women do not occupy the streets the same way men do. We take the idea of movement  for granted. By walking we break and reestablish our balance with our surroundings. To establish  a relationship with one’s city, it is important to experience it on foot. By walking we establish a  sense of belonging, a closer bond with our environment. When movement is restricted, a large part  of self-identity is stripped away. Dependance on others rather than one’s own self is promoted as  to keep the hierarchies of places intact. 
Drawing around Lahore is an integral part of research, observing movements of the different  bodies that occupy these spaces. Drawing opens up a different channel of experiencing and  understanding different bodies passing each other by in public spheres. It is a language in itself,  one that is able to trace out various manifestations of power. These initial drawings translate into  patterns or structures of the ways in which dominant bodies influence other bodies.

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