Ponti Art Gallery is interested in buying and selling works
of art by this artist.
Artist Zarina Biography
Zarina Hashmi, known professionally as Zarina, was an Indian American artist and printmaker whose work spanned drawing, printmaking, and sculpture. Born on July 16, 1937, in Aligarh, India, Zarina's life and art were profoundly influenced by her experiences of home, displacement, borders, and memory. Her minimalist works, characterized by abstract and geometric forms, sought to evoke a spiritual reaction from the viewer, exploring themes deeply rooted in her personal history and the broader human condition of migration and identity.
Zarina's early life in Aligarh was marked by the partition of India in 1947, a pivotal event that led to her family's displacement and would later become a central theme in her art. She earned a degree in mathematics from Aligarh Muslim University in 1958, a background that influenced her precise, geometric approach to art. Despite her academic achievements, Zarina discovered her passion for art and chose to pursue it, embarking on a journey that would take her across the globe and establish her as a prominent figure in the art world.
Her marriage to a foreign service diplomat in her early twenties opened the doors to extensive travel, exposing her to various cultures and art forms. Zarina studied printmaking in Bangkok and Tokyo, and intaglio with Stanley William Hayter at Atelier-17 in Paris. These experiences enriched her artistic vocabulary, allowing her to blend influences from Islamic art, minimalist movement, and her mathematical background into a unique visual language.
Zarina's work is deeply autobiographical, reflecting her life's peripatetic nature and her quest for a sense of home. She used paper as her primary medium, exploring its potential through techniques such as puncturing, sewing, scratching, and weaving. Her prints often featured maps, architectural forms, and Urdu text, combining her interest in geometry, architecture, and her cultural heritage. Notable works like "Home is a Foreign Place" and "These Cities Blotted into the Wilderness" exemplify her ability to convey complex themes of displacement and belonging through minimalist abstraction.
Throughout her career, Zarina's art was exhibited in prestigious venues worldwide, including The Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles, and the Venice Biennale, among others. Her retrospective exhibition, "Zarina: Paper Like Skin," showcased at the Hammer Museum and later traveled to the Guggenheim Museum in New York and the Art Institute of Chicago, highlighting her significant contributions to contemporary art.
Zarina's involvement in the feminist art movement and her advocacy for artists of color and women artists further underscored her commitment to addressing social and political issues through her art. She was a member of the Heresies Collective and played a pivotal role in the New York Feminist Art Institute, contributing to the discourse on art, politics, and identity.
Zarina Hashmi passed away on April 25, 2020, in London, leaving behind a legacy that continues to inspire and resonate with audiences around the world. Her art, characterized by its emotional depth, intellectual rigor, and aesthetic minimalism, remains a powerful testament to her life's journey and her enduring quest to understand and articulate the human experience of displacement and home.
Artist Zarina Quotes and Sales
of Works
Ponti Art Gallery selects and deals with paintings by the
artist. Upon request, we provide free estimates and
evaluations, communicate prices, quotations, and current
market values.
If you are interested in BUYING or SELLING works by the
artist, contact us immediately.
If you wish to sell or receive an evaluation of the
works:
Send us a frontal photo of the painting, one of the back,
and one of the signature. Also, indicate the dimensions of
the work. Inform us about the purchase origin of the work
and any kind of available documentation (purchase
receipts, certificates of authenticity, publications). One
of our operators will respond to you on the same day. We
guarantee maximum confidentiality and extreme
professionalism.
If you wish to purchase works by the painter: Contact us
and let us know your request. We will inform you about the
available works. We also offer the possibility to
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informed at the beginning of each month about the latest
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