For New Beginnings: Paul Black Talks To Saad Qureshi At OVADA

For New Beginnings

Artlyst has Joined Saad Qureshi, as the artist opened his studio at OVADA in Oxford for an informal exhibition of work in progress. Qureshi is currently working on a new oeuvre of work as part of an Arts Council England funded Research and Development project. The open studio is extended into OVADA’s gallery space to accommodate the new large-scale pieces that the artist is currently working on, allowing the viewer to witness an insiders view of Qureshi’s practice.

Image: Saad Quresh, For New Beginnings, photo: P A Black © Artlyst 2016.

Qureshi is working in charcoal and red brick dust to create drawings that explore other worldly environments; abstracted landscapes that form a relationship between drawing and sculpture through materiality, with imagery somewhere between the real and the imagined. The artist creates a series of mysterious red landscapes akin to the topographies of some unknown planet.

Image: Saad Qureshi, For New Beginnings, photo: P A Black © Artlyst 2016.

Qureshi juxtaposes sculptural elements with his dust drawings, insinuating a relationship where the landscapes become environments for the artist’s sculptures. Qureshi was kind enough to talk to Artlyst about the relationships between his drawing and sculpture, and giving the viewer the opportunity to experience the work in progress, instead of celebrating its finality.

Image: Saad Qureshi, For New Beginnings, photo: P A Black © Artlyst 2016.

About the artist:

Saad Qureshi was born in 1986. Since graduating with an MFA from The Slade School of Fine Art in 2010, Qureshi has exhibited extensively both nationally and internationally. Solo shows include Gazelli Art House in London and the Aicon Gallery in New York. Group exhibitions include the Venice Biennale 2015, Saatchi Gallery, Royal Academy of Arts, Royal British Society of Sculptors, the Barbican, Patrick Heide CA, Red Mansion Foundation, Modern Art Oxford, White Project Gallery (Paris), Centrale Montemartini (Rome), and the Museum voor Moderne Kunst (Arnhem).

Selected prizes: Arts Council England Research Award, AHRC Postgraduate Award, the Red Mansion Foundation Prize, and the Royal British Society of Sculptors Bursary Award. Residencies include the BBC2 “School of Saatchi” (London) and the International Art Zone, (Beijing).

Qureshi’s works are held in the Farjam Foundation Collection (Dubai), the Dipti Mathur Collection (California), the Creative Cities Collection (Beijing) and the Boston Consulting Group Collection, as well as other private collections. Upcoming exhibitions include a solo show in November 2016 at Nunu Fine Art, Taipei, Taiwan, and a group show at Jhaveri Contemporary in Mumbai, India, in March 2016. Qureshi has recently been awarded the Land Securities NOVA Public art commission, to create a new installation for the public realm in Westminster, London, for September 2016.

About OVADA:

Oxfordshire Visual Arts Development Agency strives to develop high quality visual arts in the South East region by providing a diverse and interdisciplinary programme of inclusive exhibitions, events and related education programmes that will develop new audiences. OVADA delivers this work by creating new opportunities for artists through exhibitions, commissions, residencies, classes and off-site projects. By providing a stimulating environment, both emerging and established artists are encouraged to take risks in their work and are supported in their continuing professional development through our programme of advice sessions, networking and information sharing.

Words: Paul Black, Saad Qureshi. Photos: P A Black © Artlyst 2016.

Saad Qureshi – For New Beginnings – Open Studio at OVADA, Oxford – until 7 February 2016.

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