- This breathtakingly intricate, beautiful book accompanies an
exhibition at the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art in Edinburgh
and extensive publicity surrounding it. The exhibition runs 19 May to 28
October and there will be a BBC tv program exploring the work of Raqib
Shaw this spring Raqib Shaw is one of the most extraordinary and
sought-after artists working in the world today. Born in Calcutta in
1974 and raised in Kashmir, he came to London to study in 1998 and has
lived there ever since. Inspired by a broad range of influences,
including the old masters, Indian miniatures, Persian carpets and the
Pre-Raphaelites, his paintings are infused with memories and longing for
his homeland in Kashmir. His technique constitutes a completely unique
kind of enamel painting. Spending months on preparatory drawings,
tracings and photographic studies, he then transfers the composition
onto prepared wooden panels, establishing an intricate design with
acrylic liner, which leaves a slightly raised line. He adds the enamel
paint using needle-fine syringes and a porcupine quill, with which he
maneuvers the paint. The finished works are intricate, magical and
breathtaking in their color and complexity. This book accompanies an
exhibition of eight paintings by Raqib Shaw at the Scottish National
Gallery of Modern Art, alongside two paintings which have long obsessed
him and have influenced specific works: Sir Joseph Noel Paton's The
Quarrel of Oberon and Titania, 1849 (National Gallery of Scotland) and
Lucas Cranach's An Allegory of Melancholy, 1528 (private collection).
The book includes the first full-length biographical study of the
artist.
