Adisa Sadaf Rawi: New Worlds

I was born in Pakistan and have an Afghan background. My family moved to Canada when war made living in Pakistan impossible. After moving to safety in Canada, my parents’ expectations for academic achievement was high . Although my family is filled with doctors, engineers, businessmen, and math majors, pursuing the arts and photography was my career choice. Conceptual photography has become the perfect visual outlet for me to express my personal struggles and experiences.

The New Worlds series echos a part of my personality and personal experience. I aim to illustrate the idea of isolation: a feeling of seclusion from the world, but a world transformed into a surreal environment filled with curiosities. In these worlds, imagined shapes added to existing places create a feeling of wonder. My colour palette reflects institutional structure: white, clean, simple, yet complex. My conservative background is portrayed through mood using colour, and the curious shapes and architectural elements reflect my experiences exploring Canada.

The composition in each image in this series intends for viewers to experience wonder, as well as tension. I wanted to share my own experience visually, the struggle of adapting and understanding: a feeling of living in a box, yet being exposed to the outside world.