Nibha Sikander, Deconstructed White Striped Hawkmoth, 2022
3D33
We're delighted to announce that we will be showcasing Anatomize by Nibha Sikander at Booth 3D33 at Art Basel Hong Kong this year.
Nibha Sikander’s presentation of artworks showcasing detailed representations of moths and birds are the artist’s attempt at a pointed confrontation of the violence we have exerted upon other species of our planet.
In Anatomize, Sikander draws from a desire to elevate the level of deconstruction and abstraction that she had showcased in her last series, Wandering Violin Mantis. Moving away from anatomically accurate replicas of moths, the artist has made one major change in her work, by enlarging their forms. This allows her to study and analyse them in greater detail. Her arrangement of these details is influenced by the specimen-like presentation of taxidermy in museums. However, in this series Sikander’s methodical layout of the fragments of the species depicted appears closer to an imaginary script solidifying her position at the intersection of science, craft, and art.
As described by curator Roobina Karode, Sikander’s works “are manifestations of the artist’s entomological interest that seeks not to dissect, but to deconstruct the received notions of natural history.” Working exclusively with paper Sikander succeeds in creating a world that invites the viewer in closer, almost as if through a magnifying glass. According to her, paper mimics nature in its versatility – soft, stiff, malleable and flexible, almost like wings, feathers and antennae - allowing her to mould it to her will.
Nibha Sikander’s presentation of artworks showcasing detailed representations of moths and birds are the artist’s attempt at a pointed confrontation of the violence we have exerted upon other species of our planet.
In Anatomize, Sikander draws from a desire to elevate the level of deconstruction and abstraction that she had showcased in her last series, Wandering Violin Mantis. Moving away from anatomically accurate replicas of moths, the artist has made one major change in her work, by enlarging their forms. This allows her to study and analyse them in greater detail. Her arrangement of these details is influenced by the specimen-like presentation of taxidermy in museums. However, in this series Sikander’s methodical layout of the fragments of the species depicted appears closer to an imaginary script solidifying her position at the intersection of science, craft, and art.
As described by curator Roobina Karode, Sikander’s works “are manifestations of the artist’s entomological interest that seeks not to dissect, but to deconstruct the received notions of natural history.” Working exclusively with paper Sikander succeeds in creating a world that invites the viewer in closer, almost as if through a magnifying glass. According to her, paper mimics nature in its versatility – soft, stiff, malleable and flexible, almost like wings, feathers and antennae - allowing her to mould it to her will.
