Learning to Fly
Acrylic on Wasli
21×27 inches
2013
Available
Sana Arjumand depicts the mystical, unseen in her work, reflecting upon Sufi concepts and myths. Over these years she has developed her own style to visually narrate the old story of existence and creation in her own language, exploring within her work ideas revolving around Love and the journey of the heart.
Softly poetic, Arjumand’s work, most of which are paintings, focus on the divine elements of existing. As in Learning to Fly, she often paints birds, as a symbol of ascension, birds flying through different levels or perhaps dimensions that visually overlap. She relates the inherent knowledge and ability of a bird to fly with the divine purpose of humans, a natural gravitation towards what it desires.
The moon is another recurring symbol in Arjumand’s recent works. She relates the imperfections of the moons – its craters and its dark side, with love. Like the moon, the journey of love is not perfect, and has a dark, mysterious side. Love is a path of struggle, of giving up the ego and experiencing the higher purpose of one’s existence. Like the moon reflecting light, the one in love radiates the light of the divine, and as the Sufis say, “God is the lover and the beloved.”
Arjumand graduated from the National College of Arts, Lahore in 2005 and has exhibited extensively nationally and internationally.
Image Courtesy | Sana Arjumand