Category: self-authored

on a day such as this…

on a day such as this, when a woman’s right to do as she pleases with her own body is taken away, what a pleasure to be in community with women. after dropping off my artwork at the huntington arts council, i had lunch with a friend from high school. the last time we met was decades ago in islamabad where we studied together for two years. she was one of the most brilliant girls in my class and unsurprisingly is now a brilliant doctor, with brilliant kids mashallah. i still remember the radical ideas we shared as very young women, the questions we had about accepted norms and precepts, how i read a lot of bertrand russell back then but also allama iqbal and the rubáiyát of omar khayyám. i still remember our discussions, activated by azra’s probing questions and skepticism. such thrilling times when our confidence was extreme and we could ace the world. maybe we still can. it’s just a matter of perception.

#friendsfromhighschool #womenfriends #friendshipisagift #womenempowerment #womensrighttochoose #womensrights #abortionisawomansright #womenshealth #womensagency

A convo with Uzma Aslam Khan at McNally Jackson Seaport

I am honored to engage in conversation with the brilliant Uzma Aslam Khan about her new book, The Miraculous True History of Nomi Ali, on June 28th (7pm) at McNally Jackson Seaport (4 Fulton St) in NYC.

Beautifully written and part of the important process of decolonizing history and literature, Uzma’s book brings to life revolutions that have been erased and forgotten, and exposes (oh so eloquently) the mechanics of colonial oppression. It’s a stunning book that demands a rich convo.

Pls join us for a discussion, reading and book signing in NYC. Tickets are available here. Pls invite others and share widely!

artwork in my office

artwork by Erica Bryant and Karen Faris in my office along with posters for film screenings over the years. also a one of a kind whistle by Delia Robinson and a beautiful ceramic bowl and plate created by my sister. reminds me of a sunflower, like the one in our kitchen <3

#artworkmakesmehappy #artworkfromfriends #artworkfrommysiste? #myoffice #aroomofonesown #setauket #longisland

back in chicago

after taking off for laguardia this morning, we were told that the plane didn’t have enough ‘pressure’ so we had to turn back. we circled on top of chicago for an hour and then landed back at o’hare, close to the time we would have landed in ny had everything gone as planned.

but my sister picked me up, we had lunch at portillo’s, fresh samosas from asian island, and then chai with her lovely friends. everything works out in the end <3

seagull at the steppenwolf theatre

tuesday night (may 10th) my sister and i went to see ‘seagull’ at the steppenwolf’s new in-the-round theater. sadly, yasen peyankov’s adaptation of the chekhov classic didn’t quite work for us.

the brisk pacing, economy of language, and non-stop humor created a disconnect between some of the messed up relationships in the play (that can evoke heartbreak) and the constant, almost canned, laughter coming from the audience. to me ‘the seagull’ is not exactly seinfeld. it’s dark humor no doubt, but it’s delivered thru sarcasm and innuendo. making the dialogue clipped and direct removes some of the layers needed to make the play work as a tragicomedy.

the actors were good but they were stuck with a less than stellar adaptation. an experience nonetheless.

#seagull #theseagull #chekhov #play #steppenwolf #steppenwolftheatre #chicago #intheroundtheatre #antonchekhov #theatreisback #theatreislife

gallivanting in chicago

my sister and i gallivanting in chicago yesterday: lunch at beatrix, afternoon spent at MCA, and then dinner at tao chicago, a spectacular restaurant housed in the historic building that used to be castle chicago nightclub before it closed in 2014. esp taken by the giant mural created by HUSH, ‘a british mixed-media artist who fuses the aesthetic of street art with subjects from japanese iconography’.

#mca #museumofcontemporaryart #chicago #taochicago #hushartist #japaneseiconography #art #sisterarethebest

The Man Who Talked Until He Disappeared

The exhibit at MCA takes its name from Bani Abidi’s watercolor series “The Man Who Talked Until He Disappeared” which depicts writers, political leaders and bloggers from Pakistan who have been disappeared on account of their activism over the past decade. In this minimalist delicate series, we see them disappear gradually on paper with the last watercolor portraying threadbare, eyeless, bodiless specters that continue to haunt us.

#baniabidi #mca #museumofcontemporaryart #chicago #pakistan #pakistaniartist #disappearances #politicaldisappeared #politicalviolence #stateviolence #militaryviolence #thedisappeared #themanwhotalkeduntilhedisappeared

Memorial to Lost Words

This sound installation by Pakistani artist Bani Abidi at MCA brought me to tears. A powerful memorial to the one million South Asian/Indian soldiers who fought in WW1 but have been completely erased. My own great grandfather fought in France, under British colonial rule.

Bani Abidi’s Memorial to Lost Words is a song installation based on letters and songs from the First World War. They are not the well archived memoirs of European and British soldiers, but the words of Indian Soldiers and their womenfolk back home in India. Even a hundred years after the fact, it is a little known fact of WWI history that more than a million Indian soldiers fought in this war. So, clearly, official accounts and memorials are very rarely truthful transmitters of history. This memorial draws from letters that were written home by Indian Soldiers and folk songs that were sung by their wives, mothers and sisters at the time but were censored or forgotten because of their candid condemnation of the war.

#baniabidi #pakistaniartist #mca #museumofcontemporaryart #chicago #worldwar1 #indiansoldiersinww1 #southasiansoldiers #soundinstallation #memorial

spring in central park

spent the day in manhattan with our daughter. what a treat to see our hardworking child (who is studying, working part time and doing an internship at IRC). a lovely sunny day and central park is glorious right now. more pictures on IG @mara__ahmed

#centralpark #nyc #newyorkcity #manhattan #daughtersareablessing #walkinthepark #sunnydayinnyc #weekendfamilytime

my review: everything everywhere all at once

saw ‘everything everywhere all at once’ in a movie theater (with a mask on) last night. it’s insane. the craziest film i’ve ever seen. also hilarious (was shaking with laughter) and full of emotion in places. not sure i loved it but michelle yeoh is a boss. just incredible. want to see her as a lead in all hollywood films. more michelle yeoh, less nicole kidman pls.

My work coming up at Wetsbury Arts

My artwork has been accepted for Westbury Arts’ Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Exhibition! First time my work will be shown on Long Island! Opening on May 6th, exhibition will be on view until May 27th. Thx Jaishri Abichandani for sharing the open call from Westbury Arts with me.

#asianpacificamericanheritagemonth #westburyarts #exhibition #artexhibition #asianpacificheritagemonth #longisland #westbury #maraahmed #thisheirloom

bilquis bano edhi – the mother of orphans

a tribute to bilquis bano edhi (august 1947 – april 2022), the mother of orphans, who together with her husband abdul sattar edhi created the edhi foundation, pakistan’s largest welfare organization. the stats are incredible: 50,000 orphans and 20,000 abandoned infants rescued, more than 40,000 nurses trained, a fleet of 1,800 ambulances, 28 rescue boats, and a helicopter for air ambulance service. it all started with Rs 5,000 and the drive to do god’s work and help others. no nobel prize for empowered people from the global south, but today i read a tribute to bilquis edhi by a young woman who was abandoned as an infant, was raised by bari amman (bilquis edhi as she was called by her many adopted children), went to school and won scholarships, studied law and is now a successful executive. thank u bilquis ji for all u have done. the stars will shine brighter as u are welcomed to eternal life. inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji’un.

[artwork by @maria_riaz_illustrates]

#biquisedhi #bilquisbanoedhi #abdulsattaredhi #edhifoundation #godswork #helpingothers #motheroforphans

Cherry blossoms at Branch Brook Park

Drove two hours each way to visit Branch Brook Park in NJ. “With more than 5,200 trees, Branch Brook Park in Newark is the country’s largest collection of Japanese cherry blossom trees.” The 360-acre park was designed by the Olmsted brothers in 1895. Felt like I was in the center of a water color painting. For lunch stopped over in Paterson and had Turkish red lentil soup and koftas at Toros. 70F and sunny. Heaven <3

#branchbrookpark #branchbrookparknj #branchbrook #torosrestaurant #paterson #newark #cherryblossoms #japanesecherryblossoms #cherryblossomtrees #spring

opening of the warp & weft [face to face] at roco

the opening of the warp & weft [ face to face ] at @roco137 was all about community. and the rochester community did not disappoint. so many people i love gathered in one space to listen to and connect with an archive of stories in all its splendid human diversity. thank u rochester <3 more pictures on instagram @mara__ahmed

#warpweft #warpweftf2f #thewarpweft #archiveofstories #audioarchive #storytelling #oralstorytelling #multilingualarchive #community #artandcommunity #rochestercontemporaryartcenter #rochesterny #artandactivism #wearethearchive