He’s one in a long line of male artists to take inspiration

The Nigerian Artist Drawing Exuberantly Plump And Pampered Nudes

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canada goose outlet canada Lagos based Wahaab, born in 1983 in Ilorin, Nigeria, grew up with a culture that glorified big bodies, in which weight was associated with affluence, canada goose factory sale health and comfort. “There is a tradition Canada Goose sale of brides to be really preparing for their wedding by eating all the time,” Jasmine Wahi, the curator behind Wahaab’s upcoming exhibition in New York City, told HuffPost. “Plumping up was a way of taking care of yourself, of being pampered. Being larger came with a certain social status.” canada goose outlet canada

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canada goose outlet sale In Wahaab’s canada goose drawings, made from conte, Canada Goose Coats On Sale ink, pastel and graphite on paper, fat women wallow in various states of undress. Some watch TV or diddle on an iPhone, others sip a cup of tea or have a snack. All are relaxed, at ease, palpably comfortable in their Canada Goose Jackets own canada goose uk outlet skin. As Wahi wrote in an essay accompanying the exhibition: “This sense of quietude that flavors the works should not be interpreted as a portrayal of laziness; but rather, with luxury and beauty.” canada goose outlet canada goose black friday sale sale

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canada goose outlet jackets “The series was inspired by someone who he knew,” Wahi explained. “To my understanding, he basically went out on a date with this woman and was struck by how under confident and closed off she was. She admitted to him it was because she was canada goose uk black friday self conscious about her size. He then started doing this work around the stigma of ‘different bodies’ that aren’t actually that different.” canada goose outlet jackets

canada goose black friday sale It’s been years since Wahaab, who is now married, met the woman who inspired the series; they didn’t keep in touch and she likely remains unaware of the effect she had on him. The women pictured on Wahaab’s canvasses spring straight from his imagination rather than reality. Their body parts bulge and roll with exaggerated gusto, allowing the viewer to linger on the rounded glory of a thigh or elbow. The smallest features, aside from the heads, are the petite hands and feet, which Wahi reads as a tribute to the gracefulness of Wahaab’s imagined subjects. canada goose black friday sale

goose outlet canada While familiarizing herself with Wahaab’s work, Wahi said she was somewhat surprised to learn that he was a practicing Muslim. canada goose outlet Having previously worked with Muslim artists like Hiba Schahbaz, Wahi expected Wahaab to have experienced a tension between the tenets of Islam and a career in nude painting.”My automatic assumption was that in painting nudes he was doing something revolutionary or rebellious,”Wahi recalled.”But actually he’s not.” goose outlet canada

canada goose outlet uk Through her interactions with Wahaab, Wahi learned that some of the stigmas canada goose store and taboos prominent in Pakistan, where Schabaz is from, cheap Canada Goose don’t apply globally. “It https://www.canadagoosejacketonlines.ca sort of spoke to my own naivety or ignorance or just biased understanding,” she said. “It made me examine the way we perceive Muslim artists, when these customs aren’t globally pervasive.” canada goose outlet uk

canada goose outlet shop Wahi’s realization about her own preconceptions of global sameness overlaps somewhat with the themes explored in Wahaab’s work. Which traditions and conventions spread via technology, globalism and economic development? Which remain rooted in time and place, and for how long? canada goose outlet shop

canada goose outlet store Wahaab’s drawings of large, black, undressed women depict an image of beauty that’s typically lacking in Western culture, from social media platforms to museum walls. He’s one in a long line of male artists to take inspiration from canada goose uk shop the female form, but his work stands apart. Many painted muses in supposedly passive repose are contorted into impossible poses no living woman could canada goose clearance sale emulate. Wahaab’s subjects, though still physiologically canada goose coats on sale fantastical, know how to relax. They spread themselves over the canvas with grace, sensuality and cheap canada goose uk abundance. It seems rather unlikely they’ll pay any heed to who’s staring canada goose outlet store.