Asma waheed

Statement

As a Pakistani woman in the diaspora, my clay and multimedia practice draws from the geometry of belonging grids, tessellations, and symmetry as metaphors for memory and migration. I turn to Islamic geometric patterns, domes, arches and courtyards to explore how balance and proportion hold emotion and displacement in equal measure. Circles echo return, triangles hold tension, and repetition becomes ritual. Each vessel and mirrored surface is an equation of endurance proof that beauty and structure can coexist under pressure, much like the women whose stories I carry in form and clay.

Artworks

This work is inspired by the geometry of belonging, how symmetry, pattern, and reflection mirror the complexities of identity and migration. Using reflective mirror sheets, I explore the indirect gaze through which women often see themselves fragmented, multiplied, and refracted by cultural expectations. The work draws from Islamic geometry grids, arches, and tessellations as mathematical precision and emotional language. Each mirrored surface transforms observation into self-reflection, making the viewer part of the equation. Artwork can be displayed on a table or can be self-standing.

The Equation of the Memory tile merges geometry with emotion. 3D-printed geometric templates press into a clay surface, each mark fragmenting a pattern and memory, recalling Islamic geometric ornamentation and the quiet logic of mathematics. Vermiculite mixed with clay, which burns away at cone 6, while black copper oxide creates an antique patina, its subtle blemishes echoing diaspora and motherhood. Through form and surface, the tile becomes a tactile equation tracing how memory, loss, and belonging endure pressure, repetition, and time.