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Writer's pictureEvermore Society

Spotlight Artist: Nimra Bandkwala

Interview lead by Danelle Eubion


Words from Nimra:


"I was born and raised in Karachi and am now settled in Canada on the traditional territories of the Attawandaron, Haudenosaunee and Anishinaabek peoples.


I am an emerging, self-taught visual artist interested in the intersections of making, storytelling and well-being. I capture stories through painting and have more recently been working with materials foraged from the land to create paints, dyes, and sculptural pieces. "


All photos are credited to Nimra Bandkwala


How long have you been practising foraging and creating art? What was the motivation behind starting foraging (sustainability, individuality, just wanting to try something new..)?


I would say I’ve been foraging since I was little. I grew up in a family that really valued reducing waste, and reusing materials. I always saw possibility in the things around me, from shells found at the beach, to scrap pieces of cloth that my grandmother would save for me and my sister.


How did you start foraging? What did you turn to when you were starting (the internet, books, someone more experienced than you…)?


I started thinking about “foraging” for art materials in a more intentional way around 5 years ago. A friend who introduced me to Jason Logan’s book Make Ink which got me interested in making my own foraged inks. I was inspired by the Four Lands Project by Jumblies Theatre + Art as a way to tell stories using foraged and found materials. I realized that using materials I find was a great way to combine my interests in art, the outdoors, and sustainability.


We see that you and your sisters make jewellery together. Would you say one of you got the others into jewellery-making or did all of you just come together through your own interests?


I can’t really remember who started it. We made lots of necklaces, bracelets and earrings when we were younger. I started wearing earrings a lot more in university, and I loved the idea of wearing miniature art, sculptures, and potential conversation-starters on my ears. We started using some of the materials we foraged or found to make earrings, sharing these on our social media pages, tabling, and it kind of just happened!


What kind of effects does your cultural background play a part in your work, and your personal art style?


I grew up in Karachi, and moved to Canada when I was 19. My art is definitely inspired by stories from Pakistan. In particular, the multidisciplinary project Reth aur Reghistan, that Manahil and I started in 2019 to explore Pakistani folklore through sculpture and poetry. My watercolour paintings incorporate a lot of plants, fruits, and animals from South-Asian motifs, as well as patterns from traditional mehndi (henna) designs. I am currently transitioning into using inks and earth pigments I make with foraged plants and rocks to create art.


Where do you find most of your inspiration when you’re stuck in a rut?


Sometimes I realise that I am taking on too much and start saying no to things, to create more space for artmaking. Othertimes I start learning about something new, for example a tree species, or the history of a certain craft. For me, art is not just the act of physically creating the piece, but the time I spent learning more about our histories, cultures, geographies, spirituality etc. I find that reading, writing, listening, and reflecting, helps me move past creative blocks.


How do you compete with the fast-paced, large-batch nature of the art and jewellery industry today?


Art is a very important, if not one of the most important parts of my life. I make art when I feel inspired to, and there are often periods when I don’t create art. I made a conscious decision not to pursue art as my primary source of income because I knew that I did not want to put that pressure on myself to navigate being an artist in the capitalist society we live in.


I wanted to maintain it as a sacred practice that grounds and connects me, rather than feeling the need to produce and sell large amounts of work to earn a living. I am more interested in community-engaged art, facilitating workshops, skill-shares and creating art with others, or using art as a personal grounding tool.


I do feel the pressure to keep up a social media presence, exhibit work, and create large quantities of work. But it’s a balance and I constantly need to check-in about whether my arts practice is aligning with my values.


Would you say your style changed over time?


It certainly has, just as I have changed over time. In Pakistan, art class involved a lot of technical skills, and my art was heavily focused on realistic figure, portrait and still-life oil or watercolour paintings.


I was always inspired by the surrealists, and I found myself creating larger oil paintings that were more whimsical and fantastical when I was in university. I have been travelling a fair bit in my 20s and this led me to start painting on a much smaller scale, using watercolour and pen.


I love creating these detailed pieces on a small scale and watercolour is still my preferred medium. I incorporate plants, animals, fruit, hands, figures, and water bodies in my work to represent our interconnectedness with the natural world.


Watercolour seems to be your speciality. Do you have any tips for watercolour work (ex. paper pilling or paint soaking through after layers of paint)?


Watercolour can be both a stubborn and versatile medium. Compared with oil and acrylic paints, I would say it’s more difficult to use and the trick to watercolour painting lies in building up layers. Once I’ve put paint on the paper, I try as much as I can to avoid painting over that area until it’s completely dry.


I try to think of interrupting the water as little as possible and letting it do its thing. Most of my watercolour paintings build shadow and depth over multiple layers. Each layers adds more richness to the colour, and more depth to areas of light and shadow.


This is very important as it’s hard to get darks in the first go and building these up through layers is what gives that three-dimensional look.

 

Find out more about Nimra:







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