From the very beginning in my major practice, I have investigated different materials like chalk, plaster and dyes. In this body of work, I endeavor to explore the symbolic materiality of plaster and its uses through times – as a material for sculptures, as building material and as an educational and ideological element in classes in the form of chalk. I experiment with plaster as it filters and soaks up ink and water, and as the ink gradually consumes the white sculpture. As the plaster cast soaks the ink, it creates a divergence, between the flow and gravity, which keeps on taking darker tones until the cast completely soaks the dyed water without leaving behind any spot of purity. As the material absorbs color and transforms, temporality becomes an intrinsic property of the object, transmuting its meaning and associations with the passage of time. The visual connotation of black on white symbolizes the dispersion of virulent filth and grime in nature, destroying its purity. My work forces the viewer to acknowledge the varied character of osmosis as it casts an abysmal impact on the material, transforming materiality and meaning through a visual experience.

About Sadqain:

Sadqain (b. 1988) is a visual artist, educator and designer based in Lahore, Pakistan. He completed his BFA in graphic design from Government College University, Faisalabad in 2012 and then went on to pursue a second BFA from the National College of Arts, Lahore, where he graduated with distinction in 2016. He has consistently exhibited his works in solo and group shows at Taseer Art Gallery, Lahore; Karachi Public Art Festival, Karachi; Como Museum, Lahore; O Art Space, Lahore; Canvas Gallery, Karachi; Gandhara Art Gallery, Karachi and Art Soch, Lahore in 2021. Sadqain has taught at the Beaconhouse National University, Institute of Art and Culture and his alma mater the National College of Arts in Lahore. He has also worked with the Commissioner’s Office on Dharampura Underpass Public Art Project.