Faculty of Art

Sculpture/Installation

Nabeela Malik

Fitrah

The concept behind my thesis is depicting the journey of connecting with God and engaging the viewerthrough architectural elements, lighting and geometry to allow the viewer to experience the emotivenature of the stages of the journey. Fitrah is our innate desire to connect with our Creator and so my artexhibits the values and fundamental concepts that would be acquired and experiences throughout thisjourney. My work began as a video projection and has progressed to become an immersive installationworking with powerful elements of light, water, geometry and language. Through research andexperimentation, I have been created an installation that is inviting to individuals from any backgroundand entices them to engage in contemplation and spiritual and religious discussions.The first stage is of humility and gratitude depicted through a fractal geometric design projection. Fractals are a way in which we can recognize that there are patterns and organized design behind all of creation, even in things like clouds which we may have thought was more random before. Experiencing the harmony, balance and higher wisdom behind creation leads us to recognizing there must be a Creator who made and maintains it. Furthermore, we are humbled by our context within the universe. The next stage is where we face blockages in our journey but we can see the finish line and know we want to be connected with God and at peace with all of these concepts. This is depicted through the pieces that are floating around the hexagonal structure. The calligraphy painted on them reads as Al Tawaab which is an attribute of God meaning The Most Forgiving, and the One that we keep returning to. In our journey to God, the only thing stopping us is ourselves. We already know that we are meant to be imperfect and naturally there are times when we question things but to keep remembering that it is our intent which counts. God doesn't need us, and He has already more than we need, it is in our own benefit to better ourselves and remember that this journey should be beautiful and God is Most Forgiving. The last stage is when we are inside the hexagonal structure and comforted by the geometry, warm light and enclosed space we feel at peace. There are large openings on each side to remind us that at the final stage we are balanced between the physical and spiritual experiences of life. We are well aware of our surroundings but through our hard work and values are in this safe space and in constant remembrance of God. Inside there is painted waves on each panel that is a stylized form of the Arabic phrase Subhan'Allah which means Glory be to God. However, just as the rest of the Arabic language, the root word from Subhan alludes to a deeper and more metaphorical meaning. The word Subhan comes from the root letter combination S-B-H from which all the other words mean swimming, gliding, etc. Thus, we understand that to recognize God and be connected with Him makes it feel as if we are gliding through life. As we have evolved from water creatures, water is something we are naturally drawn to and its powerful energy in our lives allows us to experience physically the power of feeling God's embrace and love. When I first read about this in the commentary of the Qur'an, I was so excited and intrigued to learn more about the root word system. It proves that all of the misconceptions and twisted practices of Islam are due to the lack of acknowledgement that to understand something as deep as the Qur'an, we must go into the deeper meanings and find what has been lost in literal translation and understanding. The usage of a hexagon is in reference again to how science being God's creation, must prove the existence of God. Hexagon's are a phenomenal shape in how they occur throughout nature and the more we look into the science behind them, the more we are awe struck by how each element in nature is profound. The metal aperture in the center is a metaphor for the moment we all have at some point in our lives when all the doors seem to open at once. This moment changes our perspective and allows us to see with clarity and a new perspective but is dependent on our willingness to take the first step.

“The purpose behind my thesis research is to question why there is such a lack of understanding for thebeauty and comforting nature of connecting with God. When I talk to people of all backgrounds, wealways conclude that there is a general understanding that there must be a Creator, but it seems difficult tobe able to connect with Him and they don’t like the way that this process and lifestyle has been portrayedby religious peoples. My work is creating a point of connection that people can enter with no priorknowledge of religion by seeing how some of their values are very similar to the ones that I am depicting.Going from the first step where we understand humility, purpose, and selflessness, to the middle stage ofbeing guided by sound reason and establishing values to the last stage when one feels God’s presence.The purpose of my creative research is to create a spiritual space that allows viewers to experience andlearn about Islamic teachings that Muslims believe in around the world. God and religion have becomesensitive topics and so I am confronting Islamophobia and misconceptions by showing the beauty behindthe bond we have with God. Each part of my work is addressing values and fundamental concepts that arerelatable to the viewer such as the traits we acquire in our journey to become more socially andindividually responsible. It is also important to contextualize religious spiritual experience in the modernworld and how one can be both physically and spiritually balanced. Some theories that my work isreferring to are phenomenology and how it is brought to life using light, motifs, and geometry in space.What differentiates us as individuals is information; received through different senses at different times indifferent combinations and contexts. However, there are some parts of life that no matter how little howmuch or how in general we are informed our emotive reaction to them is mostly the same. It goes beyondour physical and entices us to search for the cause for this deeper satisfaction. The pursuit for deeper fulfillment that elevates us from the worldly experience ofanimals, begs the question of how we have these experiences, how so many people have them, in anyplace and at any time. My basis in Islam is due to the wholesomeness of combining math's, sciences,philosophy and sound logic and reasoning as a cohesiveness of the belief system. I have looked into thespecific aspects of atmosphere aesthetics and how they affect us, and how to use this knowledge tooptimize viewer experience of my work. I am creating a spiritual and contemplative atmosphere throughaesthetic decisions in how the viewer moves through my architectural installation. Elements such aslighting and scale play key roles in bringing the viewer into my work. My work is also concerned withpsychology and sociology, how much do people resist confrontation, why is there not a curiosity for howwe were created and how the universe is and always has been in perfect balance. As well as howlanguage, an invention which allowed humans to communicate and progress quickly, affects us and howthe depth and beauty of Arabic helps us recognize the beauty and depth of Islam.Metal is the material that I am most drawn to for my concepts as I see spirituality and connectingwith God as a battle more so than an easily acquired blissful journey. Just as a warrior must train andchallenge their mental and physical state, the spiritual warrior mindset requires a person to reach theirfullest potential. The solidity, and powerful presence of metal brings the powerful energy that I striveto evoke in my work. I see spirituality to be as eminent as physicality in our experience of life. The lighting that I chosewas a warm orange vertical light to cast the shadows from the laser cut design and create a concentratedarea of warmth in contrast to the rest of the space. Warm light has always been more comforting to oureyes as it is resembling of our source of heat and light without which we could not survive. The powerand energy behind it make it compelling as one of the phenomena of this world that out of our innatenature we are drawn to out of necessity and awe. As we have evolved from water creatures, and aredependent on water for survival as well, it becomes something that we are also drawn to and find comfortin.The hexagonal structure created a continuation of the geometric rosette pattern from the original laser cutpiece, to its reflection, to the mirroring of itself and its reflection. It continued its outermost shapes’ formsthrough the openings of the hexagonal structure and then the shadows cast onto the floor. This allowed forharmony in the composition and fluidity of the design whereby the concept of every dimension of ourexistence having purpose and making sense together.”