RASHEED ARAEEN
b. 1935, PakistanRasheed Araeen’s innovative approach to Minimalism grew out of his background in civil engineering. When he realized that engineering could not fulfill his creative ambitions, he exchanged its structured discipline for the expressive freedom of a full-time art practice. Drawing on his technical training, Araeen began making “structures” — open, modular works designed to be rearranged. Although working in London, far from the New York center of Minimalist art, he developed a language that echoed artists such as Donald Judd. Yet, there are important differences. As art critic Jean Fisher observed, the distinction lies between “an instrumental, abstract-logical regulation of the world and an organic one.”
Beyond his sculptural structures, Araeen has created an extensive body of paintings and two-dimensional assemblages. His calligraphic paintings draw inspiration from the thinkers of the Abbasid era (8th–13th centuries), embedding their names within intricate geometric designs. While Arabic philosophy and Islamic calligraphy are significant influences, Araeen resists simplistic readings of his work, emphasizing that the symmetry in Islamic art serves as a metaphor for human equality. In his cruciform pieces, he pairs photographic images with painted green panels, producing raw, grainy compositions that heighten the tensions between East and West — a dialogue made especially poignant in the years following the Gulf wars.
Courtesy Baró Galeria
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