A solo show displaying Aamir Habib’s sculptures was held at Canvas Gallery in Karachi. How work examines on ways in which religious frameworks are understood and negotiated, and how they intersect and interact with cultural traditions. Drawing on personal, familial and communal contexts, the project considers the influence of religious belief on social behaviour, interpersonal relationships and lived experiences. Aamir has experimented with various mediums over the course of his artistic journey, including but not limited to, fiberglass, wood, acrylic and mixed mediums. In recent years his work has increasingly engaged with transparency and light as key visual and conceptual elements.

Aamir’s practice critically investigates contentious socio-political issues, addressing cultural misconceptions, social paradoxes, political instability and the pervasive influence of media. Birth of Munna presents two sculpted male heads placed on stainless steel trays. Fiberglass allows for realistic, yet artificial representation, emphasizing a constructed identify rather than lived authenticity. The repeated forms suggest duality or mirroring, perhaps the coexistence of innocence and indoctrinations, individuality and conformity, The closed eye and neutral expression imply passivity, suggestion a subject shaped by external forces rather than personal agency. “Munna” is a colloquial term often associated with boyhood or innocence, contrasts sharply with the bearded faces. Perhaps implying the premature imposition of identity, belief or ideology upon the male body for a young age. The head covering and beard are cultural and religious markers, raising questions about masculinity, faith and social roles are constructed, inherited and normalised within some communities.

Another piece that grips the attention of the viewers is titled, King of Nothing. This sculptural work presents a disembodies head rendered in a vivid red hue, position within a raised, chalice-like structure. The elevated placement recalls both ceremonial display and containment, evoking associations with ritual vessels, reliquaries or offering stands. The intense red coloration may be symbolic of blood, vitality, violence or even martyrdom, invoking themes of life and loss. The bearded and facial features again suggest culturally coded markers of masculinity and religious identify, while their isolation from the body reinforces themes of fragmentation and objectification.

Through repetition, isolation and ritualistic display Aamir highlights how cultural and religious frameworks shape, elevate and at times, constrain the individual. Aamir’s sculptures invite critical reflections on the processes through which identity is formed and inherited with a socio-political context.

CAPTION
Curdled Milk, 2025, Fiberglass, stainless steel, glass, led lights and wood, 14 x 39 inches
Taalib, 2025, Fiberglass, stainless steel, glass and led lights, 42 x 14 x 14 inches
Spiritual Enterprise I, 2025, Concrete and gold pigments, 1/5 + 2 AP, 10 x 16 inches
Fire of Hell, 2025, Fiber Glass, aluminum and 2k paint, 24 x 20 inches
Spiritual Enterprise III, 2025, Concrete and gold pigments, 1/5 + 2 AP, 10 x 16 inches
Spiritual Enterprise II, 2025, Concrete and gold pigments 1/5 + 2 AP, 10 x 16 inches