A solo show displaying the works of Romila Kareem was recently held at Chawkandi Gallery in Karachi. A heartwarming show, full of emotion and nostalgia which allows the viewers to connect with artist and her art.
The curator of the show, Nusrat Khawaja, shares “memory like water, has no intrinsic shape. Its fluid nature plays with elements of loss and gain as the colours of memory shapeshift with time. We continually reconstruct the past through the unpredictable agency of memory, subjecting it to re-examination, reinterpretation and reflection. The artist dives deep into the hidden depths of remembrance The Four Corners of Memory. A cherished photo album assembled by her mother becomes a keepsake of relationships within a family and most particularly of the relationship between mother and daughter.”
People often use photographs and special memorabilia they have saved from their childhood to connect with their past. The photograph immortalises moments, but emotions evolve and change with time, as does how we view that moment that was captured. This is what one sees in Romila’s show as well. How she has used photos and keepsakes to recreate moments from her past.
Romila shares, “the primary source of inspiration for this exhibition was my mother’s collection of photographs in a photo album. She had started adding pictures in it during the early 1960s. Whenever all our relatives got together, we would look at the album recalling fond memories. It had photographs of everyone’s childhood. I revisited the album after a gap of several years, it was almost empty. Most of the photographs that remained had become lose and were enclosed in a plastic bag. Not a single picture was in its original place. My mother told me that the album was old, photographs had started to drop out of the album. Relatives and siblings asked for their memorable photos, and those were no longer part of the collection. Only the photo corners (which are not obsolete) adhered to the pages.”
Romila recreates these shiny photo corners in her work to symbolize hope, love and dreams that were once tucked between these corners. The recreation of the photo corners is an integral part of recomposing the lost narrative. It is her attempt to put back together what was once scattered and lost, her mother’s stories added new layers to the pre-existing narrative. A beautiful collection of memories that has led to some wonderfully emotional and nostalgic art. Her exhibition feels personal and so full of love and longing.
Evening in the courtyard - Two sisters and Motia vine, mix media on wasli, 15 x 12 inches, 2025 Herbarium of Memories, mix media on wasli, 11 x 16 inches, 2025 Between the pages, mix media on wasli, 11 x 8 inches, 2025 Whispers of a Summer Afternoon-cheeni Khana, mix media on wasli, 24 x 12 inches, 2025