Khairullah Rahim
Meet Me at the Bar The multimedia artist, who is represented by Yavuz Gallery, shares how the relationships between objects, communities and locations are more interdependent than we care to admit
Your works tell the stories of marginalised communities through an assemblage of everyday objects. What do you want people to know about these communities?
My current research explores the politics of appearance, highlighting luminosity, legibility and safety, through the lens of those who exist on the fringes of society. They are visible but only during the weekends, at night, and when you need the job done. They are not widely represented in the media, and when they do, they get misrepresented. They thrive in the dark and away from street light. I am interested in the use of light to manipulate and transform commonplace items into bedazzled objects that appear bright, loud, vibrant, sparkly and beautiful, especially in the dark. While many associate light as an enabler for safety, there is also light that perhaps shine more brightly on some than others.
How do artist-audience interactions such as Encounters help shape your work?
I have often used code-switching strategies when speaking about the motivations and references behind my works. More than it is for me, it is important that I think thoroughly about the safety of the communities I am highlighting, often those that are already so vulnerable. The Encounters segment was a great opportunity that allowed me to speak more intimately about some of these references. It was refreshing for me to see the viewers interact and handle the objects as I was speaking about them. It felt like an intimate studio visit with friends.
How has the pandemic inspired your art?
I will echo back what everyone has been saying—the pandemic has affected all of us. What I have noticed shifting in my practice is how demarcations between categories of mediums are beginning to blur and complicate. For instance, objects that are collected have been staged as an installation with accompanying audio elements and then recorded into a video format. What does that make of the artwork then? I don’t know but I am excited to see where this will lead me to next.
What are you up to next?
At the moment I am mostly preoccupied with grad school. I am currently an MFA Visual Arts candidate at Mason Gross School of the Arts in Rutgers University, New Jersey. The programme has been fantastic so far in guiding me to probe my practice deeper and more critically.