NARGIS NAQVI
Mixed media artist from Ontario, Canada
Paintings | Resin Trays | Life Coach
Artist Statement
A painting can tell so many stories. My art is folded in layers of my various cultures, my emotions, and a story that I have never shared verbally. With a Pakistani heritage to a Saudi upbringing and a Western education, the thing that binds it all together is my faith. I tell my story from the lens of a Muslim expat. It is a source of healing for my mind and body and a reason to develop connections and build bridges with the community around me.
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Have you ever felt a connection to a print or a piece of fabric? I often see patterns and prints and find my inspiration for the next piece of work, often decoupaging them onto the canvas before layering thick paint in bold brushstrokes of contrasting colors. I also love crystals and the shine of resin and incorporate that as part of the look, either on the painting or a separate piece of tray and coasters that someone can cherish forever, bringing a piece of the ethnic into their homes.
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I have enjoyed my experiences and want to take the viewers on this journey via art. A journey that tells the colorful stories of women swathed in rich fabric, from villages and deserts to humanizing their emotions that could be relatable to us. My logo also asks the onlooker to go behind the apparent and dig deeper into the meaning behind my art.
About me
My earliest memory of me painting is of me as a four year old, using a red crayon on my neighbors bedroom wall and creating a large mural - much to my Parent's embarrassment!
My Father then decided to indulge my passion and I delved into oil paints on large canvases.
Born in Ireland, then growing up in Saudi Arabia in the 80s, the choices were limited but with a Pakistani ethnicity a love for Saudi Arabia - my forever home - and educated in the U.S., I was inspired by the ethnic life of Pakistani villages and Saudi desert women along with the mix of the Western world.
After moving to Canada in 1999, and being a visible minority raising children, who are very much Canadian, I feel it is important to have my voice heard and understood so that I can be true to myself and be accepted for what I am while representing the other minorities that live here. For that reason I also founded a youth non-profit organization: MY Voice Canada, giving young people a place to find themselves.
I have exhibited in over 12 group exhibitions in Toronto and one solo exhibit in Oakville. One of my paintings is wrapped around a traffic box in Milton ON. You can read more about it here.