Untitled 1977

Editor: So, this is Nasreen Mohamedi's "Untitled" drawing from 1977. It's graphite on paper and immediately strikes me as very precise and almost architectural. It makes me think about control and intentionality, but it is also so minimal. What do you see in this piece? Curator: I see a profound exploration of space, and resistance to the gendered and racialised constraints in art history. Mohamedi, as a woman of colour working within a largely male-dominated art world, particularly in the context of Indian modernism, strategically used abstraction to challenge representation itself. This "Untitled" work isn't just lines on paper, it's a carefully constructed visual language, rejecting the narrative expectations placed on women artists. How do you think her choice of geometric abstraction pushes back against traditional artistic boundaries? Editor: That makes so much sense! It never occurred to me, I had only thought about more formal considerations such as her line work or her interest in geometry. Is this minimalist language political in itself? Curator: Exactly. Minimalism here serves as a subversive act. By reducing her art to its bare essentials, she resisted easy categorisation and deflected any potential appropriation of her work. These stark lines, organized on grid paper, can be interpreted as a deliberate strategy to resist conventional aesthetic expectations and societal roles often imposed on women artists. It is a visual declaration of autonomy, refusing to conform to established norms. What else does this suggest to you? Editor: Thinking about her life and the historical moment, the precision could also be a sort of personal structure amidst societal chaos... Curator: Absolutely. This drawing functions as a powerful statement of self-determination and challenges traditional narratives. The simplicity is deceptive, and this allows Mohamedi to explore complexities of gender, identity, and cultural expectations. It offers valuable lessons on the intersectionality of art, identity, and resistance, and forces us to re-evaluate who gets to define beauty. Editor: That is a completely different view of the drawing than I first came to it with. Now, the lines seem to contain such an extraordinary wealth of meaning. Thank you for opening my eyes!