NAQSH I: WEHSHAT

The first of three works in the Naqsh series, built entirely in crosshatch, mark over mark, nothing retracted. The face emerges from deep shadow, surrounded by red and teal forms that press in from both sides without touching it. The blue cord at the throat is the only point of restraint in a composition otherwise given over entirely to force.
Wehshat describes a particular quality of longing, not the ache of missing something, but the state that arrives when longing has been held too long and turned wild. This work holds that.
 
Part of Naqsh (2026), a self-contained series of three unique portraits in waterproof ink on fine grain paper, each set within a border of Indian brocade silk drawn from the artist's own textile archive.
 
Waterproof ink on fine grain paper · Crosshatch · Picture 9" × 12" · Brocade silk mat 3" · Distressed gold wooden frame 2" · Glass-fronted · Overall approx. 19" × 22" · Unique work · Signed · Certificate of authenticity · Ships from New Delhi