On April 25 last, Saneeya A. Kanya launched her line at the National Gallery of Art at Castellani House under the theme ‘Objects of Interest – Paintings and Photographs’ by Saneeya A. Kanya’.
This international, multi-media artist was born in Karachi, Pakistan, and earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the prestigious Indus Valley School of Arts and Architecture in Pakistan. She later earned her Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Cincinnati, College of Design, Art, Architecture and Planning (DAAP) in the United States, and has displayed her work in galleries in several countries.
Her work has been featured in several prominent media outlets. She has taught courses at the undergraduate level, and has full teaching certification. She has travelled the world, visiting more than 30 countries across North & South America, the Caribbean, Europe, the Middle East, South Asia and Southeast Asia. And as the wife of a diplomat, Saneeya continues to travel the world, exploring the boundaries of art. She has lived in Georgetown, Guyana since September 2011.
The Objects of Interest
At her launch last Thursday, there were two types of art being displayed: paintings and photographs. It wasn’t about the finished piece or how the photo was taken, but it was the process she had employed to create those pieces.
After 18 months of residence in Guyana, the exquisite miniature paintings and photographs she presented at the gallery reflected the intensity of examination and thought that she has bought to a range of objects, and the association and connections she had invested in her pieces.
Each one represented itself; there was no narrative or story. Each piece showed its own diversity, which could be contemplated by itself.
Kanya said, “Each image is worthy of study and represents something precious.” In that light, each person’s attention, rather than the artist’s, can make it so. But this also is, incidentally, the process of the exploratory artist, whose visual sensitivity reveals richness to the viewer.
The photographic images in her collection seek to capture the vibrancy of life throughout Guyana. While the paintings are a result of an emotional state of mind, her photographs are simply a physical reaction to things that can catch her attention.
In her miniature pieces, she was in the interior areas, and she had to adjust herself to her surroundings. She was inspired by the beauty and spirit of the surroundings. The first miniature piece she created in Guyana was that of the Kiskadee, after which she moved on to horses and other birds.
She said, “In just 18 months, I have had the opportunity to see many sides of Guyana — the vibrancy of Georgetown, the stillness in the savannahs of the Rupununi, the energy of movements in the Essequibo, the richness of the black waters, and the muscle of Berbice.”
She also noted that, “Objects of Interest” captures my fascination with Guyana. All of the work is highly influenced by the environment around me, not just geographically, but physically and emotionally as well.”
In her line of work, each element is represented as an “object” in such a way that it feels like a relic in the hand. From sprouting okra to a dead butterfly on the ground, each one of Saneeya’s images represents something precious and worthy of detailed study. It is just amazing and interesting what can be created from a different pair of eyes.
