Artist Statement

I think everyone in this world is looking for a peaceful and safe place where he/she can live with their family and loved ones. It is a dreamland, a land of happiness and innocence. A place that has never witnessed violence, fear, and hatred. And in a place like this, he/she can independently live their life. But there will always be stronger powers which will create disturbances in our world to their advantage. They always interfere, disrupt matters, and often invade it in various ways. Everywhere in this world, we witness these external forces with different forms/faces. They gain power over the weaker, destroy their peace to sustain themselves. Sometimes the plans of man are overruled by the plans of nature and things don't go according to expectations. At this point, the artist feels the misery and pain of this world and asks God to create another world. Then he starts looking at the sky and after losing his faith in humanity he wishes to become a bird that can live and fly peacefully in the sky.

I think this world has become a living hell from where one can’t even witness the light of the moon anymore. Whenever I sit and work alone in my studio it’s an escape into a fictional world that I am trying to create for myself with the help of my imagination I am slowly rendering these hopes with pencil and brushes. But just like the real world, my practice is also influenced by the happenings floating around in my surroundings and I try to record these marks and traces within my work.

Sajid Khan
Artist statement July 2021