Paris to Delhi: A Travel Portfolio

2008-09-15T06:22:00.003+02:00

Classes have started at Princeton. I have settled into a rigorous schedule of academics and extracurriculars. And while the most adventurous summer of my life now seems like a distant episode, everyday of my life is colored and informed by that experience.The body of artwork I created over the summer will be exhibited later this year at Princeton. The drawings and photographs serve as excellent

2008-08-17T15:52:00.004+02:00

28"x44" ~ pencil on paper No erasers were used in the making of these drawings. I have been meaning to do this for a long time: a huge sheet of paper on which I can illustrate the process rather than worrying about a finished painting. I think of the pencil lines as a skeleton which holds the image together, or like scaffolding thar props up the domes of the mosque. Another theme being explored

2008-08-16T10:24:00.002+02:00

28"x44" ~ pastel on paperEven though the girl in the drawing is blind, she was very eager to pose for this picture... I think it comes through.

2008-08-13T22:05:00.007+02:00

So some time ago I tried something (which I thought was) very interesting and now it is finally ready to be viewed. It might be a little like going to the Modern Art museum in the Centre Pompidou and staring at three big, white, completely blank square canvases which have been carefully arranged next to each other on a large white wall. Such art either seems like a joke played by the artist to

2008-08-10T13:47:00.003+02:00

11"x17" ~ watercolor on paper

2008-08-09T16:50:00.004+02:00

As the train started moving towards Paris, the fields began to transform into city. People would come in and leave at each stop, and soon the train became very full. I was focusing on individuals, noting what they were wearing, how they were conversing, and it was all foreign. Men and women dressed for work, teenagers with skin-tight jeans, arab girls with scarves, arab boys sporting alternative

2008-08-08T22:01:00.002+02:00

Sabeen sent me this photograph today, in an email titled "Waqas being a good citizen;)." It brought back memories from that last morning in Delhi. It was such a coincidence meeting her there, at the airport, and I didn't know she took a picture while I helped some Indians fill out their emigration forms. Their professions: mason, carpenter, plumber. They were going to work in Saudi Arabia for two

2008-08-06T12:24:00.001+02:00

14 Juillet 200811"x17" ~ watercolor on paper

2008-08-06T08:16:00.002+02:00

approx. 11"x17" ~ watercolor on paperParis, Paris, Paris... the last is a carousel seen from the Eiffel Tower.

2008-08-06T08:11:00.002+02:00

approx. 11"x17" ~ watercolor on paperThis is the famous church that Van Gogh painted in his last years. I started this when I was at Auvers-sur-Oise. It got all ruined and now here it finally is. I'll work from this and maybe develop some variations.

2008-08-06T08:05:00.002+02:00

approx. 8.5"x11" ~ pastel on paper

2008-08-03T16:07:00.006+02:00

approx. 8.5"x11" ~ charcoal, pencil and pastel on paperThese mark a transition. I am moving away from Roman sculpture and starting to tackle the other subject that interested me in Paris - the cityscape and architecture in general, and rooftops in particular. I want to tell the story of how this magnificent city converses with the sky above. Hopefully this is something I can pursue in the Delhi

2008-08-03T16:03:00.002+02:00

approx. 8.5"x11" ~ watercolor on paperThis didn't photograph very well, but I'm putting it up anyway before it takes its place in my portfolio. This was done one evening in the studio mentioned in the previous post.

2008-08-03T15:52:00.003+02:00

This wall in my college room in Paris (the room i liked to call my studio) served as a sort of record of my adventures in the Paris art world, and beyond. It was a way to add color to this perfect studio with white walls and a wooden floor, a fridge and a desk.The dilemma, however, was whether I should go out and explore the city or stay in and work. Because I had August to do a lot of the latter

2008-08-03T11:25:00.003+02:00

28"x44" ~ pen-and-ink, charcoal, and watercolor on paperThis is (arguably) the largest portrait I've ever done. It started off as a pen-and-ink drawing, and then charcoal was introduced, and then watercolor too found its way into it. It was one of those instances when there's music playing, and you're open to possibilities and you let the drawing dictate its own terms. It was fun.

2008-08-02T08:11:00.004+02:00

28"x44" ~ pastel on paperAgain, it was the expression on his face preserved in silver that really intrigued me. Though I had initially planned to continue with charcoal, I thought color might be a good thing to delve in at this point. This sculpture too was in d'Orsay. Below are details of the same drawing.

2008-08-02T08:06:00.001+02:00

11"x17" ~ watercolor on paperBefore working on these, the last time I painted in watercolor was 2 years ago.

2008-07-31T07:21:00.005+02:00

18"x24" ~ charcoal on paperThis is my drawing of a sculpture in Musee d'Orsay. The sculpture is behind glass because it has been damaged and chipped off at several places. It's color is a decaying grey-green. Despite all that, it is full of energy, and the emotion it holds (is it sadness, ecstasy, pain, yearning?) transcends time and space.

2008-07-30T17:58:00.002+02:00

I have put up some sketches as a more focused continuation of the sculpture theme. As I mentioned yesterday, I love to add narratives of my own to these. I couldn’t help, then, to bring some of these to life, merely by adding a dark spot in the eye. You can tell those apart from the sculpture, where the eyeballs are blank.You can also click here to view photography from the tomb of Abdullah

2008-07-29T19:01:00.013+02:00

The Moleskine sketchbook that Bronson gave me on my birthday has been a very close companion on my trip. Because I easily forget things, the sketchbook has served as a guide and reminder. It has notes, phone numbers, hand-drawn maps copied from the internet, sketches and drawings, and also journal entries. These entries are not really for anyone to see but just for me to look back to and recall

2008-07-28T16:55:00.004+02:00

The strangest thing happened. I suddenly find myself in my home in Karachi, even though I had planned to have tea with Aman somewhere in Delhi today.I got up this morning and decided to call Pakistan Airlines to make absolutely sure I would be flying out on Wednesday, July 30th. Ever since I had heard Jahnvi's horror story in which the airline refused to let her travel on an e-ticket, I had been

2008-07-27T13:35:00.005+02:00

I walked around Chandni Chowk and felt like Enoo from Taare Zameen Par. I wanted to see the Light and Sound Show at the Red Fort, but it was much later on, so I walked toward the Jama Masjid to find some food that was not McDonald’s.Pictures from the day can be found on Flickr.com by clicking here.As I passed shopkeepers, autos, bicycles and samosa stands, it suddenly became cloudy and dark;

2008-07-25T09:58:00.004+02:00

The generally slow-paced life in India, the Delhi heat, and the fact that I am nearing the end of my journey (not to mention the slow internet) makes me more nostalgic, more indulgent, less likely to post on this blog every single day. Things come up, sometimes things so subtle and indescribable you cannot write about them because writing would be expressing it, and that would certainly fall

2008-07-23T08:42:00.003+02:00

I visited Laxmi Narayan Mandir (temple) which is dedicated to various Hindu gods. I had to deposit shoes, camera, bag and cell phone outside and enter having been “physically and mentally” cleansed. The temple is also known as the Birla Mandir. It was built in 1938 and was inaugurated by Gandhi. I read about the meaning and history of the swastika sign and was ironically reminded of other places

2008-07-22T08:46:00.001+02:00

I woke up with a sore throat and a slight fever on Sunday. I took immediate measures – got standard fever pills, took a cold shower, had hot clear vegetable soup, and when I felt better I went out into the burning heat of Delhi which was soothing. I had some errands to run – groceries, sending faxes, etc. Later that day, Uday took me and his friend Parth to watch a play at the India Habitat

2008-07-20T11:32:00.005+02:00

Yesterday, I met up with Uday.I first met Uday four years ago at the Mahindra United World College of India at Pune, where I was representing Pakistan at the peace conference organized by Youth Initiative for Peace. We became really close friends, and I want to think that our friendship is a microcosm of the peace, friendship and love we wish to see in the entire subcontinent. [Find more

2008-07-18T19:44:00.001+02:00

So I plunged myself head first into this city and everything seems strange and everyone seems to be staring at me with distrust, and their eyes say to me, “You don’t belong here.” Had the same thing not happened in Paris, I would not have recognized the trend. I realized, of course, that it is my own distrust and my own fear that I need to overcome. I need to grow into the city by taking it in,

2008-07-18T13:13:00.002+02:00

Delhi. Before the partition of the subcontinent in 1947, my maternal ancestors lived not very far from here. My grandmother loves to tell stories of the splendor and joy of life in rural India and dilli.After World War II the British left behind an independent India but also a hastily established Pakistan where the Muslims of India could “practice their religion without persecution.” It was a

2008-07-17T22:04:00.004+02:00

Adieu Paris.While the beauty of Paris seems eternal, my experience here has been transient. It is an expensive city. The least I spent in a day was 20 Euros. I was worried that I would go over my budget and have no money left for Delhi. Yet that fear was short-lived because time flew by.[Find more pictures from the day on Flickr.com by clicking here] Life slips by

2008-07-15T17:40:00.001+02:00

In other news, I discovered and learned to appreciate cheese! I had been missing out.Also, I got disillusioned with and now quite dislike the Metro. Though I like the entrances by Hector Guimard, walking across Paris is definitely more fun.

2008-07-15T17:39:00.005+02:00

All photos from my trip are on Flickr and you can access them by clicking here.

2008-07-15T16:52:00.007+02:00

I went with some friends I met here to watch the grand concert and fireworks for Bastille Day here in Paris at the Champs de Mars, next to the Eiffel Tower. The place was packed with people, and afterwards it took us a long time to get home.James Blunt sang songs that were happy which of course didn't suit him. I did discover Christophe though!I listened to a song by Raphael, “Adieu Haïti,” and

2008-07-14T16:36:00.005+02:00

I can't stop thinking about the fireworks, and though the internet today is very slow (I am in my room because its 14 July and the campus center is closed), here goes.The whole avenue was packed with people, festive and expectant. We were all very excited. In my excitement I even conversed a little in French with Clare's sister, who spoke little English. Gregiore and Clare were back, and so was I

2008-07-14T15:49:00.005+02:00

I am leaving for Delhi on Wednesday. It makes me sad to be leaving Paris.More pictures from the fireworks at Versailles here.

2008-07-13T12:01:00.006+02:00

My last post was very profound, according to Angela, who loves sarcasm. Her comment was of course very appropriate...Today again I don't even know where to start from, what to write. It's that quiet moment in my life right now, the deep breath before the plunge. I spent yesterday walking around the city with Gregoire and Stephanie, my friends from the internship I had in New York at the Actors

2008-07-12T14:46:00.001+02:00

All is still well and going great.It's the week-end and I'm seeing some friends today.

2008-07-11T12:50:00.004+02:00

I was traveling to Auvers-sur-Oise, the small remote town where Van Gogh spent the last years of his life and painted most of his masterpieces, and where he eventually shot himself. The train sped past the city and then fields and smaller towns. It was empty for as far as I could see. The view outside was dazzling. A young man came in and sat opposite me. He wanted to try my headphones on his

2008-07-10T08:40:00.002+02:00

In some hurry this morning, because I am going to the location of Vincent Van Gogh’s final days, Auvers-sur-Oise, which I believe is a village outside Paris.Note: Photographs from the day are on Flickr and can be viewed by clicking here. Yesterday I went to visit the Centre Pompidou. I visited the temporary architecture exhibition by Dominique Perrault, and then proceeded to look at the

2008-07-09T11:00:00.004+02:00

"I have a terrible need of - dare I say the word? -religion. Then I go out at night to paint the stars..." -Vincent van Gogh, 1888 I got to see some of my favorite paintings at the Musée d’Orsay. While they invoked a great sense of awe and admiration in me, they also made me joyful and excited because of the magical sense of connectedness I felt when I looked at them. Van Gogh’s meticulous

2008-07-08T10:33:00.005+02:00

After the adventures of the night before, it wasn’t surprising that I got up at 3pm yesterday. I hadn’t slept properly for a few days. I wanted to go visit the Cimetière du Père-Lachaise, where Oscar Wilde is buried, and thought sunset would be a good time for photography there. There were some problems with the Metro. We were diverted from a station and I had to take a longer route. There will

2008-07-07T17:50:00.005+02:00

The Musée du Louvre. Grand, ostentatious, overwhelming – it was everything I had expected it to be from my last visit (which must have been 10 years ago) and of course from what I had read. I knew I couldn’t “do” the whole museum in one go and even trying that would be a big mistake. Note: Photographs from the day are on Flickr and can be viewed by clicking here. The first thing I saw was

2008-07-06T10:02:00.023+02:00

It’s said that if you put things in words you lose them forever.Yesterday started out with a plan to replicate last semester’s class trip to the art galleries in New York. It began with a dread that angry French curators in elite galleries would throw me out. After all I had heard a friend here exclaim once that “the French are very theatrical; they like to perform!” The location is

2008-07-05T09:54:00.005+02:00

I researched and found out about the Quartier Saint Germain, a neighborhood with a lot of art galleries. Ever since my painting Professor at Princeton, Julia Jacquette, took us to see galleries in Chelsea in New York, I love looking at contemporary art in small display spaces. I can really do justice to the artwork, and I can relate to it better because it’s very current. In large museums you

2008-07-04T13:35:00.009+02:00

Yesterday was phenomenal. In 1889 the Tour Eiffel was constructed as part of the great World's Fair, a symbol of the greatness of the 3rd French Republic. A very modern structure was erected in an ancient cultural center, and it was received very badly by the traditional critics, but loved by the people. It was a great innovation in structural engineering, as Professor Billington would tell you,

2008-07-03T10:21:00.001+02:00

Paris intimidated me at first. I didn’t know many people here, and I didn’t know how to get around the city or even buy food to eat or store in my little fridge. It was a little like the first day of the pre-orientation at Princeton, except I didn’t speak French very well, and that made things more challenging. Yesterday I learned to treat French as a language as opposed to a code that you

2008-07-02T16:42:00.004+02:00

Martin A. Dale '53 Award. Princeton University.Do you have an idea for a summer project to explore a new area of interest, live out a dream, or develop your creativity or leadership skills? If so, you should apply for the Martin A. Dale '53 Summer Awards. This award gives Princeton sophomores a $4,000* stipend to fund special summer projects. Past projects have included: Special programs

2008-07-02T16:13:00.010+02:00

Waiting for several hours at Abu Dhabi airport seemed like a turning point in life. It reminded me of the time when, after missing a flight at JFK, I spent a night at the New York airport to catch the flight next morning. It was like being between two worlds, which are distinct and yet hard to categorize and define because they span physical, emotional, cultural and other spheres. After nostalgic

2008-07-02T16:06:00.004+02:00

Prelude. I have to admit even I don't fully know what this project is all about. I suppose it will only be exactly apparent when it’s over, but maybe I can repeat what I’ve told others: “This summer I am going to live in Paris and Delhi for an independent painting project funded by the Martin Dale award at Princeton.” I guess the nature of the award itself is peculiar. It’s meant to fund a