October 6, 2024
By Mateen Ali
LAHORE
Two seemingly distant worlds, but in essence, could not be more connected – Aroosa Rana’s latest exhibition attracted dozens of people to the Haam Art Gallery in Lahore. The event was part of the Lahore Biennale’s third edition, and focused on off beat themes and portrayed interesting ideas. Rana is a visual artist and an art educator, who specialized in painting but now works with digital media, photography and video. The exhibition was launched on October 4, and will continue till October 9.
The use of mathematics by artists has stunned many people, as amazing works of art have been created throughout history. The interplay between the logical, analytical nature of mathematics and the expressive, intuitive nature of art has led to fascinating discoveries and collaborations. From the geometric shapes used in architecture to the underlying mathematical principles in music theory, both fields rely on structures to create order and beauty. Both also rely on the use of patterns.
A series of visual art pieces explored the special relationship between ‘probability’ and the ‘unpredictability of life.’
“I have been using art and mathematics—two different disciplines for my work,” she said, speaking to Voicepk. “I have merged mathematical principles with artistic expression.”
In her work, Rana celebrates the beauty of chance and the improbable. Each piece dialogues between order and randomness, mirroring life’s unpredictability. By embracing unforeseen variations, she captures ‘serendipitous moments’, inviting viewers to reflect on their experiences with the improbable.
She has also played with the ideas of absence and presence, emphasising the uncertainty of existence.
“You can see that in some of the works displayed here, people are in a single place, but they are not interacting,” she said.
Some empty spaces in the exhibition seemed to represent moments of loss, while others depicted a sense of transition—the tension between life and death. One of the techniques used by the artist was superimposition, which involves layering one image on top of another. Rana has used it to create seemingly fragmented and disconnected events into single frames. The images overlap and interact in a way that distorts the viewers sense of reality and time.
One of the incidents that Aroosa Rana has portrayed in her works displayed in the Haam Gallery includes the bomb blast in Lahore’s Gulshan-e-Iqbal Part in March 2016. This video installation explored life’s unpredictability through her compositions. Rana says she created the installation a few days after the blast. She captured the park during the daytime, and it was completely empty because of the terror.
While merging mathematical principles with artistic expression, Rana even celebrates the beauty of chance and the improbable.
In all there were three video installations and five print installations.