Imran Qureshi
Artist of the Year 2013
18 April–4 August 2013
Deutsche Bank KunstHalle
Unter den Linden 13/15
Berlin, Germany
www.deutsche-bank-kunsthalle.de
Imran Qureshi is Deutsche Bank’s 2013 “Artist of the Year.” Born 1972 in Pakistan, he studied in Lahore at the National College of Arts with a major in miniature painting—a traditional discipline that he teaches there today. Qureshi is considered to be one of the most important contemporary artists on the Subcontinent, not least because he reclaims the regionally and historically rooted discipline of miniature painting and transports it to the present day. His work constitutes a unique synthesis of the genre’s motifs and techniques with current issues and the formal language of contemporary abstract painting. Qureshi incorporates personal observations on everyday life in present-day Pakistan into his work while acknowledging that violence can be met with not only in his native country, but in many cultures and societies worldwide.
In Qureshi’s work, the exploration of ornament is both a return to tradition and a commentary on the present day. The artist converts miniature painting into site-specific installations that address architectural space. Works such as Blessings Upon the Land of My Love, 2011 (Sharjah Biennale), or They Shimmer Still, 2012 (Biennale of Sydney), harbor references to the historical or political meaning of the respective buildings.
The show Imran Qureshi: Artist of the Year 2013 at the Deutsche Bank KunstHalle is the Pakistani artist’s first major presentation in Europe. He has created several large-scale paintings for this spring’s inaugural exhibition at the KunstHalle. A new series of Qureshi’s miniatures is shown in an original architectural structure reminiscent of buildings from the Mogul period. The site-specific work And They Still Seek the Traces of Blood (2013) is being shown together with the new works, as is Qureshi’s “Missiles” series, which is presented in the KunstHalle Studio.
Upon its conclusion, the exhibition will travel to the Museo d’arte contemporanea Roma (MACRO). In May, Imran Qureshi will realize a project for the roof garden of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York; he will also show in the Italian Pavilion at this year’s 55th Biennale di Venezia.
Artist of the Year
Following Wangechi Mutu (2010), Yto Barrada (2011), and Roman Ondák (2012), Deutsche Bank awards its “Artist of the Year” prize for the fourth time, to Imran Qureshi. The bank pays tribute to young artists on the recommendation of the Deutsche Bank Global Art Advisory Council, comprised of renowned curators Okwui Enwezor, Hou Hanru, Udo Kittelmann, and Victoria Noorthoorn. An essential aspect in the selection is that the artist addresses social issues in an individual way and has already created an inimitable and exceptional body of work in which works on paper or photography play a key role.
In contrast with many other awards, the “Artist of the Year” is not a monetary prize, but a constant of Deutsche Bank’s art program that supports new positions and promotes the acquisition of works for the corporate collection. The prize culminates in the “Artist of the Year” solo exhibition at the Deutsche Bank KunstHalle, which subsequently travels to other international venues. The artist is also invited to design a special edition for the KunstHalle.
The opening of the Deutsche Bank KunstHalle also marks a new and exceptional chapter in Deutsche Bank’s commitment to art. Along with a clear declaration of allegiance to Berlin, the focus is on cooperative projects with international partner museums and cultural institutions, independent curators, and the Deutsche Bank Collection.
More information at db-artmag.com.
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