Kehkashan

Symposium 2. How unlike the MPR it was! The MPR I remember as a stressful day. I was unsure of my own direction as I made the video and I took every word of critique to heart. The Symposium 2 video, on the other hand, was made with confidence, with surety of direction and I revelled in the words of my colleagues be they critical or complimentary. Not to mention, every single Symposium video was inspiring and brilliant. It perfectly showcased how far all of us, as a class, had come. At the end of this day, I felt pumped and ready to deliver a good body of work for the final show.

Here were the comments on my video on skype:

Steph: I love the word hollistic

Anfal:the music K going fancy here

Me: LOL the journey felt epic to me

Steph, and intro slides oh lala

Me: so i needed epic music looool

Steph :)it is like a film reel !!

Anfal: it is EPIC !!!OMG K

Steph: its fab

Anfal:amazing

Steph: are they drone shots K

Iris: I like the music😂😂

Steph: the 3D paintings are great

律: this BGM reminds me of the trailer of some commercial films. (sweatgrinning)

Iris: Avengers? the 3D paintings are great

Steph: Think so!!!

Anfal: ugh fake news!

Steph: i love cartography

Anfal:i love forty rules of love !EPIC

paola: this presentation shares a lot of positivity for some reason

Anfal: i am hungry lol

Steph, 1:35 PM
I will eat for you

1:35 PM
thank you! sorry that two of the titles didnt get exported. was using themt o credit the artist

Steph, 1:35 PM
a real community ethos in your work

this seems integral

you are great at curation I agree with Ed

1:36 PM
@steph yes drone shots 🙂

paola, 1:36 PM
agreed with Ed

Anfal, 1:36 PM
yes you should never stop creating such digital content of exploration !!!

Steph, 1:36 PM
your work is a synergy with collective parts-

Anfal, 1:36 PM
its so refreshing and motivational !

1:37 PM
LOL sorry about that

Steph, 1:37 PM
they all come together to work like a machine

Alena, 1:37 PM
The wave artwork is really impressive

paola, 1:37 PM
very motivational indeed

Arlette, 1:37 PM
https://youtu.be/PuP653ev3MI made me think of your work

7 Billion Others – Official Trailer – YouTube
https://youtu.be

Steph, 1:37 PM
without one part it wont work- colaberation at its best

Iris, 1:37 PM
Yes and positive

Steph, 1:37 PM
i think the documentation in itself is great

1:38 PM
so I am presenting only one part that hopefully will encapsulate the essence

Steph, 1:38 PM
like watching your progress and developments

paola, 1:38 PM
i think digital tools in this case can help you achieve your motivation of sharing and bringing people togheter

Steph, 1:38 PM
Please continue to share this in future

I need to have to see the next sequel

Alena, 1:38 PM
you could try to explore VR and make your glass artworks there

paola, 1:38 PM
is more about a media than a tool to create itself

Steph, 1:38 PM
like star wars

cant miss it

1:38 PM
@paola agreed!

@Alena I would love to explore that!

Robin, 1:38 PM
yeah, I agree… the idea of the mosaic as rich layers and reflecting your cultural background

Arlette, 1:39 PM

so I am presenting only one part that hopefully will encapsulate the essence
Kehkashan Khalid, 30/05/2019
More more more! 😜

J, 1:39 PM
for me the energy of a wave form is something that seems to reflect your own impetus

Steph, 1:39 PM
yes the final piece could be collaberativw

I was thinking that Gabby

J, 1:40 PM
the waveform captured in the painting has so much potential

1:40 PM
@steph I would have LOVED that, but not knowing london and not being in london would make it a challenge

Steph, 1:40 PM
maybe do it in your hometown and bring it with you:D

1:40 PM
so I’ve settled for something else, I’ll allow people to play around with my resin pieces and even take them away

Vanessa, 1:40 PM
Gab : love love loved itttt!

paola, 1:40 PM
well done @Kehkashan:)

1:41 PM
and the reason for projecting on fabric is to make people a part of it as well, they’ll automatically influence it as they approach

Vanessa, 1:41 PM
(smile)
I agree

and here are the comments on the live video, transcribed as best as I could:

Gabriella: The thing that really stands out is the link with robin. The process of inbetween (?). It seems like its really important to your work, bringing everyone together. It being a really community sort of environment. I really like when you said you have these narratives that live through the people, they don’t need to be there to keep the narrative going.

Edward: With the Karachi projects what really struck me is that she has a profound talent as a curator. It was like curating a whole community. To have a social impact, people who write grant applications are crying out for this kind of stuff. It was real social impact.

Gab: you said the fear of people forgetting about you when you don’t post. people do actually think that way and stop themselves from posting what they’re doing about the good around us.

Edward: Goes back to the idea of the community. It’s not all about her but about everyone together.

G: There’s something honorable (?) about changing things and making them for the better.

Jonathan: Let’s talk about the epic nature of the music (i think that’s what he said)

Someone: It felt like a motivational video. It was a bit distracting from what she’s saying. It was a bit of a handful. I’m trying to figure it out.

Ed: It was pretty jam-packed wasn’t it? Maybe the challenge will be to present just enough work. Rather than an overwhelming tide of stuff.

Arlette: I really like the idea of a mosaic, and I think her final show idea kind of shows that I think. It’s a collection of different resin pieces.

Ed: The idea of a cartographic painting made out of diverse objects

Arlette: Posted about 7 billion others. Built these little yurts in paris and every yurt had a theme, and people all over the world talked according to that theme. It was really interesting, and I think she’s met so many people. Seems like there’s such a richness of content, I want more.

Jonathan: There’s a practicality and a reality when you’re travelling across the world. There’s always a compromise with that. She’ll present a small part and then another part projected onto fabric.

Gabriella: The process could be linked to the community vibe, everyone bringing their own mosaic to complete the painting.

Jonathan: Kehkashan was concerned mostly about the dark side of the social media, but also using it to bring people together. There was a little bit about an exhibition with a mobile phone, augmented reality there. That wave is like a huge hanging wave on the edge of the canvas.

There’s always a fear when other people are discussing your art. And things like ‘the music was distracting’ do give you a jolt of worry. But on the whole the comments were so positive and empowering. First of all, the epic music comment made me laugh out loud. I felt a bit silly for having chosen that theme, but then at the same time it was so unapologetically me that in the end, I think that’s okay. I felt like everyone’s video was unapologetically them, and that’s what made this symposium so powerful and communicative and evocative.

I thought it was hilarious when Steph and the others said it was like a trailer to a movie. But I was also glad when Arlette, Robin, Anfal, Dwa and some others discussed that they’d like to see this work shared more, and seen more. That was heartening. Most of the comments in fact, from Steph, Janet, Paola, (everyone!) were so encouraging! I was glad to hear that the cultural backgrounds of the places I was from, or lived in, and the cultural background of the mosaic in this contemporary setting, appearing through travel, people and public art came through clearly. On the whole, I loved the feedback and it strengthened my confidence for he direction I was going in. Steph’s recommendation of presenting something collaborative at the final show gave me food for thought. At first I was thinking of the logistical issue of not knowing/being in london, but then she said something about creating the collaboration where I am and bringing it along. That really struck a note, and I’m currently working on something I hope to unveil soon!