The boundaries of what we call ‘visual art’ have not only expanded over time, but continue to overlap with various mediums of self-expression. More specifically, the ‘fine arts’, which earlier on were restricted to drawing, painting and sculpture now have an open door policy in accepting within its domain, other mediums such as photography, video, text, installations and live performances. The latter form of self-expression is not entirely a new one but seems to be gaining more popularity amongst art practitioners around the world.

In the context of contemporary art a ‘performance’ is generally not like a formal stage performance, but could be an ‘intervention’ in common social situations, or a planned ‘happening’ within or outside a gallery space that aims to elicit a response from viewers. Basically, the artist is using his or her own body as a medium of communication, individually or with others. Often such performances may have activist overtones or else they may simply aim to alter perceptions or gain insight into human reactions.

In Pakistan the aforementioned manner of ‘performance’ is still not a common phenomenon, though there are various examples that can nonetheless be sighted. One recent performance-based endeavour was shared at Lahore’s 39K gallery. Two young art graduates of The Beaconhouse National University, Lahore, Zoya Siddique and Farwa Hassan Rizvi who had been selected for the Theertha Performance Award that was facilitated by the Lahore Biennale Foundation (LBF), were invited by the Gallery as part of the initiative — “Artspeak” by LBF, to share their experiences of their participation in the Performance Art Festival in Colombo, Sri Lanka. This latter event had been organised by The Theertha Performance Platform which is part of the Theertha International Artists Collective, an artists’ led initiative based in Colombo.

Zoya Siddique and Farwa Hassan Rizvi share their experiences of participation in the Performance Art Festival in Colombo

Siddique and Rizvi worked alongside 21 artists, from four countries, on the theme — “Borders and Lines: the temporality of landscape”. In this complex concept, ‘landscape’ was syn­ony­mous with the ‘world’ as we know it, experience it, and imagine it to be. It appeared to be a socio-politically charged discourse and the one that seems to be becoming popular in recent times, even as witnessed in the ongoing mega art event, The Venice Biennale, which chose the theme “All the World’s Futures”.

Indeed, whatever was presented by the young Pakistani artists at 39K indicated that the performances were often intense in their comments on society or else suggestive of political angst. For example, Sri Lankan artist Bandu Menamperi was seen wearing a suit and tie while dragging a large tuna fish carcass along the crowded roads of Borella Junction in Colombo where the Performance Festival was being held. He then proceeded to tear the battered fish with his hands and then cradled its remains with a tearful expression. This was an intense comment of war brutalities as he may have witnessed in Sri Lanka.

In another more nuanced performance, Rizvi and an Indian artist Jeetin Rangher, stood on top of a concrete column in the middle of a car park with their bodies leaning backwards and their feet on the edge of the beam, so that they could only be saved from falling by holding each other’s hand. The tension of their bodies was offset by their friendly expressions as they exchanged information about their lives. This obviously was a comment on the strained relationship of India and Pakistan and garnered a lot of interest by the viewers.

Various other examples of performances also highlighted the intense mood and the social concerns of our younger generation. Art, whether it is through painterly expertise or gestures in performance, is an expression of the times, and holds the mirror to society. The aforementioned endeavour in Colombo did indeed seem to have brought forth a variety of provocative narratives that provided both food for thought and introspection.

Published in Dawn, Sunday Magazine, July 19th, 2015

On a mobile phone? Get the Dawn Mobile App: Apple Store | Google Play