Zarina Hashmi's 86th birthday | Google Doodle celebrates Indian-American artist

 

Zarina Hashmi’s 86th birthday | Google Doodle celebrates

A significant Indian American artist who would have marked her 86th birthday today. Created by guest illustrator Tara Anand from New York, the doodle beautifully honors Hashmi’s artistic legacy by integrating her distinctive geometric and minimalist abstract forms, capturing the essence of her style.

According to media reports, Hashmi gained recognition for her extraordinary sculptures, prints, and drawings. Her artistic creations, influenced by the Minimalist movement, masterfully utilized abstract and geometric elements to elicit a deep spiritual encounter in those who beheld them.

Zarina Hashmi’s 86th birthday | Born In 1937

Zarina Hashmi, born in 1937 in the quaint Indian town of AligarhEnjoyed a blissful upbringing surrounded by her four siblings. However, her life took a tragic turn with the partition of India. Alongside her family and numerous others, she was compelled to uproot and resettle in Karachi, a city newly formed in Pakistan.

Zarina Hashmi’s 86th birthday

Embarking on a global journey at the age of 21 Zarina Hashmi entered into marriage with a young diplomat, opening doors to diverse destinations. Her travels led her to Bangkok, Paris, and Japan, where she delved into the realm of printmaking and immersed herself in the influences of modernist and abstract art movements.

In 1977, a significant chapter unfolded as Zarina Hashmi relocated to New York City. There, she emerged as a fervent advocate for women and female artists of color, swiftly joining the ranks of the Heresies Collective. This feminist journal dedicated itself to exploring the intersections of art, politics, and social justice.

Subsequently, Hashmi assumed a professorial position at the New York Feminist Art Institute, an educational institution committed to providing equitable opportunities for women artists. In 1980, she played a collaborative role in curating the exhibition “Dialectics of Isolation: An Exhibition of Third World Women Artists of the United States” at A.I.R. Gallery. This groundbreaking exhibition played a pivotal role in amplifying the artistic voices and perspectives of women artists from marginalized backgrounds.

Hashmi garnered significant acclaim for her mesmerizing intaglio and woodcut prints, which deftly integrated semi-abstract portrayals of the houses and cities she had experienced throughout her life.

Her identity as an Indian woman, born into the Muslim faith, along with her nomadic upbringing, profoundly shaped her artistic expression. Notably, Hashmi’s artwork often incorporated visual elements inspired by Islamic religious adornments, characterized by precise geometrical patterns that held immense aesthetic allure.

Zarina Hashmi’s early artistic works, with their abstract and subtly geometric aesthetics, have drawn comparisons to renowned minimalists like Sol LeWitt.

Her art continues to captivate audiences worldwide, evident in its inclusion in permanent collections at esteemed institutions such as the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and several other distinguished galleries.