Aliyah Sadaf | Catharsis

We are thrilled to share this beautiful collection of artworks which have just landed at the gallery. We have worked with Chicago based multi-disciplinary artist Aliyah Sadaf for several years now and continue to represent her with much admiration.

Aliyah creates heavily textured, sculptural pieces of art using concrete as a primary medium, often incorporating unique additional mediums including recycled paper and cardboard in her process. Imperfection and human emotion are ever present in her work as an artist, which this new collection of original works entitled ‘Catharsis’, so beautifully illustrates. Through the creation of five works, Aliyah observes the accumulation of thoughts and emotions that are a by-product of the past few years, incorporating slate blue, ocher and rich moody hues that have informed the sub conscience and held presence in her process.

My paintings always start with an emotion. These pieces urge one to continue to shed and share what we are feeling. It emphasizes that while each year is a year gone by, it lingers… and alongside other years casts itself upon our future experiences. These works are my attempt to very intentionally ‘process’ and ‘cleanse’ and fully move past those experiences and flavours of life.

In this collection of works, concrete is applied to wood panel and layered with varying consistencies of acrylic medium to achieve a textured, and organic look and feel that is a common thread across the artist’s work.

Aliyah Sadaf works out of her studio in Chicago, Illinois. Having grown up in an urban setting in Pakistan while spending summers in her grandmother’s rural village, Aliyah cultivated a strong affinity for materials in their most organic forms. Whether it was concrete cracking from years of exposure to the elements or crumbling clay houses that shielded their inhabitants from the summer heat, it all embodies home to Aliyah. The elements and textures are an instinctive part of her process and can be seen as a common thread across her work. The visually complex yet tactile elements also page homage to nuanced and complex human emotions which Aliyah seeks to study and visualize through her work.

I love the ebbs and flows of my own feelings as the paintings evolve. Once the first paint strokes go on, the improvisation happens. My pieces are bound by a common thread of being visually organic and emotionally raw. They seek to embody the imperfection that prevails in all aspects of our lives, our relationships, and our emotions.

Styling & Photography | Avenue Design Studio