KARACHI: Over the centuries artists have interpreted the character of Eve in myriads of ways. Using her as a symbol, artists have portrayed the various facets of womankind, especially in the context of societies where women are voiceless. On Friday when International Women’s Day was being observed across the globe, an exhibition of senior artist Raja Changez Sultan’s artworks titled ‘The Thousand Faces of Eve’ opened at the Full Circle Gallery.

It is a rare display in the sense that the artist has tried to bring to light not just the aspects of Eve, as it were, pertaining to grief and sorrow but also the ones that pertain to her individuality.

According to the description provided by the gallery, the ‘series celebrates the moods and nuances of women as visible in their faces’. While this is correct, perhaps the more noticeable feature of Raja Changez Sultan’s artworks is that through these faces (or is it only one face?) he at the same time is making an attempt to show what’s not ‘visible’. This is why the element of murkiness or blurriness never disappears from the paintings and turns the series into a mystery of sorts. By doing that he achieves the higher aim of making his artworks aesthetically all the more appealing.

The exhibits titled ‘The Thousand Faces of Eve’ are placed in the middle section of the gallery. They have one interesting common factor: the eyes of the girl(s). The eyes are looking out of the frame as if trying to evade eye contact. This can be attributed to many things, including the fact that expressing themselves does not always come easy to the protagonist that the artist has drawn. Hence the eyes assume the role of the revealer as well as of the hider.

The exhibition will continue until March 29.