Anila Quayyum Agha Art
Pakistani
Anila Quayyum Agha is a Pakistani-American artist who works in a cross-disciplinary fashion with mixed media. She explores global politics, cultural multiplicity, mass media, and social and gender roles. As a result, her artwork is a conceptually challenging mixture of thought, artistic action and social experience. Since 2019 her work has been featured in eight solo museum exhibitions.
Agha is internationally recognized for her large-scale cube installations that use light and pattern to immerse viewers in shared experiences and inclusive spaces. The patterns Agha laser cuts into the lacquered-steel cubes are a reinterpretation of floral and geometric motifs found in Islamic art and architecture in Asia and Africa. Suspended and lit from within, the cubes cast elaborate floor-to-ceiling shadows that transform the surrounding environment, alluding to the richly ornamented public spaces such as mosques that Agha was excluded from as a female growing up in Lahore.
After arriving in the U.S. from Pakistan in 2000, Agha attended graduate school to study fiber arts. Over time, she expanded her practice to include other mediums as her work became increasingly sculptural. While still a student, Agha was frequently told that as a woman, particularly a woman of color and an immigrant, she would never advance her career if she used techniques associated with craft or visual elements unique to Islamic culture. But after seeing exhibitions of the subversive embroidered paintings of Egyptian artist Ghada Amer, the hand-sewn story quilts by African American artist Faith Ringgold and the multimedia installations created using textile techniques by American artists Anne Wilson and Ann Hamilton, Agha knew there was space for the kind of art she wanted to make, which was authentic to her life experiences while also conveying universal truths.
Anila Quayyum Agha received a BFA from the National College of Arts, Lahore, and an MFA from the University of North Texas. She resides in Indianapolis, Indiana, and Augusta, Georgia, where she is a professor and the Eminent Morris Scholar of Fine Art at Augusta University.
Agha’s work has been exhibited at Asia Society, New York; Peabody Essex Museum, Salem, Massachusetts; National Sculpture Museum, Valladolid, Spain; Chimei Museum of Art, Tainan City, Taiwan; Dallas Contemporary Art Museum, Texas; Cincinnati Art Museum, Ohio; the Columbia Museum of Art, South Carolina; the Amon Carter Museum of American Art, Fort Worth, Texas; University of New México Art Museum, Albuquerque; Jule Collins Smith Museum, Auburn, Alabama; Toledo Museum of Art, Ohio; Philbrook Museum of Art, Tulsa; and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Jacksonville, Florida.
Major awards include the 2019 Painters and Sculptors Grant from the Joan Mitchell Foundation and the 2021 SARF (Smithsonian Artist Research Fellowship). In 2019, Agha’s work was included in She Persists at the Venice Biennale.
Born in Lahore, Pakistan, 1965 | Lives and works in Augusta, Georgia, and Indianapolis, Indiana.(Biography provided by Sundaram Tagore Gallery)
to
2
1
1
1
1
1
Overall Height
to
Overall Width
to
2
2
2
6,898
3,229
2,514
1,217
2
2
Artist: Anila Quayyum Agha
Laser-cut encaustic red burgundy floral embroidery on paper
By Anila Quayyum Agha
Located in NEW YORK, NY
Anila Quayyum Agha
All the Flowers are for Me - Burgundy, 2016
Laser-cut encaustic embroidery on paper
21 x 21 inches
53.3 x 53.3 cm
AQA038
Anila Quayyum Agha examines issues of global politics, cultural identity, mass media and gender roles in her multidisciplinary practice. The Pakistani-American artist is best known for her immersive, large-scale light installations in which she laser-cuts elaborate patterns into three-dimensional cubes. Suspended and lit from within, the cubes cast lace-like, floor-to-ceiling shadows that completely transform the surrounding environment, alluding to the richly ornamented public spaces such as mosques that Agha was excluded from as a female growing up in Lahore.
In addition to her suspended light installations, Agha also creates wall-mounted sculptural works, including her Flowers series (2018) that explores love and loss inspired by the mixed emotions she experienced following her son’s wedding and mother’s passing, events that happened in the same year. Although these works may appear decorative, they are imbued with meaning, from the floral patterns that express the beauty and femininity of her mother, to the metallic threads commonly used for wedding dresses in Pakistan. The visual elements collectively amplify the interplay between the matrimonial and the funereal, and by extension, the larger cycle of life.
To produce these elaborate works, Agha laser-cuts vibrantly hued encaustic paper with intricate patterns and adorns them with light-reflecting embroidery and beads. These exquisitely detailed drawings are framed within shadow boxes, allowing light to pass through the cut-outs and cast patterned shadows in a manner similar to her large-scale light installations. The framing and shadows allow these works to transcend their two-dimensionality.
Anila Quayyum Agha has an M.F.A. in fiber arts from the University of North Texas. She has exhibited her work across the globe, including in the 2018 Kansas City Biennale, curated by Dan Cameron; the Peabody Essex Museum, Massachusetts; the Brooklyn Academy of Music, New York; the Dallas Contemporary Art Museum, Texas; the National Museum of Sculpture, Valladolid, Spain; and the Cheongju Craft Biennale, Korea. Her work is in the collections of the Cincinnati Art Museum, Ohio; the Grand Rapids Art...
Category
2010s Abstract Geometric Anila Quayyum Agha Art
Materials
Paper, Mixed Media
Flowers (Orange Circle)
By Anila Quayyum Agha
Located in NEW YORK, NY
Anila Quayyum Agha
Flowers (Orange Circle), 2017
Mixed media on paper (encaustic orange circle with pink beads in center)
29.5 x 30 inches
74.9 x 76.2 cm...
Category
2010s Abstract Geometric Anila Quayyum Agha Art
Materials
Paper, Mixed Media
Related Items
Pastel Geometric Landscape in Vivid Tones, Yellow and Purple Impressionist Field
By Natalia Roman
Located in Barcelona, ES
"Pastel Geometric Landscape" is an abstract painting by Spanish artist Natalia Roman. It is a beautiful abstract architectural painting of unique blur...
Category
2010s Abstract Geometric Anila Quayyum Agha Art
Materials
Mixed Media, Oil, Acrylic, Watercolor, Archival Paper
Colorful painting on paper, Unique piece, Abstract Expressionist
Located in Carballo, ES
TUSET (1997, A Coruña, España)
Mixed media painting on paper
Ready to frame
One-of-a-kind
Signed on back
Includes certificate of authenticity
2021
65 x 50 cm.
It belongs to the ser...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Geometric Anila Quayyum Agha Art
Materials
Paper, Oil Crayon, Ink, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Pencil
H 65 in W 50 in D 0.2 in
11 Cybergraph (M7). Colourful abstract geometric painting.
Located in Segovia, ES
11 Cybergraph (M7). Colourful abstract geometric painting
Mixed media on wood panel, 2023.
Dimensions in cm.: 42 x 42 x 2.5 cm. (Without frame 35x35x2 cm.)
In inches: 16.54" x 16.54"...
Category
2010s Abstract Geometric Anila Quayyum Agha Art
Materials
Mixed Media, Wood Panel
H 16.54 in W 16.54 in D 0.99 in
Lyrical Abstraction Abstract Expressionist painting for Sonoma CA (signed heart)
By Robert Natkin
Located in New York, NY
Robert Natkin
Lyrical Abstraction for the Sonoma Mission Inn, Sonoma, California, 1990
Acrylic on paper painting with collaged element
Signed twice by the ...
Category
1990s Abstract Geometric Anila Quayyum Agha Art
Materials
Paper, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Pencil
Little Windows. Geometric and Abstract Mixed media painting with LED light.
By Cari Cohen
Located in Miami, US
Little Windows. Mixed media textured and acrylic paint on Wood. Separate LED box light. 24H x 24Wx 3D
This series of artwork evokes a novel effect. Light becomes intertwined in the ...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Geometric Anila Quayyum Agha Art
Materials
Plaster, LED Light, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Wood Panel
Lloyd Martin, Grid 15-16, Mixed Media, 2015
By Lloyd Martin
Located in Boston, MA
Artist: Lloyd Martin
Title: Grid 15-16
Size: 30 x 22 inches
Medium: Mixed media, acrylic, pastel, graphite, collage on paper
Year: 2015
Price: 3,500
American artist Lloyd Martin, kn...
Category
2010s Abstract Geometric Anila Quayyum Agha Art
Materials
Paper, Oil Pastel, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Graphite
10 Cybergraph (M8). Colourful abstract geometric painting.
Located in Segovia, ES
10 Cybergraph (M8). Colourful abstract geometric painting
Mixed media on wood panel, 2023.
Dimensions in cm.: 42 x 42 x 2.5 cm. (Without frame 35x35x2 cm.)
In inches: 16.54" x 16.54"...
Category
2010s Abstract Geometric Anila Quayyum Agha Art
Materials
Mixed Media, Wood Panel
H 16.54 in W 16.54 in D 0.99 in
12 Cybercollage (M1). Colourful abstract geometric painting.
Located in Segovia, ES
12 Cybercollage (M81. Colourful abstract geometric painting
Mixed media on canvas, on wood panel, 2019.
Dimensions in cm.: 41.5 x 31.5 x 5 cm. (Without frame 40x30x2 cm.)
In inches:...
Category
2010s Abstract Geometric Anila Quayyum Agha Art
Materials
Mixed Media, Wood Panel, Canvas
H 16.34 in W 12.41 in D 1.97 in
Intersecting Magic Square
By Charmion von Wiegand
Located in New York, NY
Charmion von Wiegand
Intersecting Magic Square, ca. 1963
Gouache on paperboard
Signed and titled on the back of the artwork. The signature shown on the frame back is a photo of the actual signature on the artwork itself.
Frame Included: elegantly floated and framed in hand made white wood museum frame with UV plexiglass
This work is signed and titled on the back of the artwork itself. The signature shown on the back of the frame is a photo of the actual signature, since the actual pencil signature and title is on the artwork itself, which can't be seen within the frame
Measurements:
Frame:
21 x 17 x 1.5 inches
Artwork:
18 x 14.25 inches
The Estate of the celebrated artist Charmion Von Wiegand has been represented exclusively by Michael Rosenfeld...
Category
1960s Abstract Geometric Anila Quayyum Agha Art
Materials
Gouache, Handmade Paper, Mixed Media, Pencil
Untitled Mid-Century Modern Geometric Abstraction
By Rolph Scarlett
Located in New York, NY
Rolph Scarlett
Untitled Mid-Century Modern Geometric Abstraction, ca. 1950
Gouache on paper painting
Hand signed on lower right front
This is a stunning original, signed vintage 1950...
Category
Mid-20th Century Abstract Geometric Anila Quayyum Agha Art
Materials
Gouache, Mixed Media, Pencil
Texcollage (M10). Colorful abstract geometric painting
Located in Segovia, ES
Texcollage (M10). Colourful abstract geometric painting
Mixed media on wood panel, 2015.
Dimensions in cm.: 87 x 47 x 5 cm. (Without frame 80x40 cm.)
In inches: 34.25" x 18.5" x 1.97...
Category
2010s Abstract Geometric Anila Quayyum Agha Art
Materials
Mixed Media, Wood Panel
H 34.26 in W 18.51 in D 1.97 in
Original Abstract Mixed Media Painting “What Lies Beneath”
By William Finlayson Jr.
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Born in Tallahasee Fl, William started his artistic career as a color consultant for his family's Design and Painting company that took on constant projects of custom painted interio...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Geometric Anila Quayyum Agha Art
Materials
Paper, Acrylic, Mixed Media
H 23 in W 60 in D 1.75 in
Previously Available Items
Flowers (Blue and Orange Circle)
By Anila Quayyum Agha
Located in NEW YORK, NY
Anila Quayyum Agha
Flowers (Blue and Orange Circle), 2017
Mixed media on paper (encaustic blue outside circle with orange center, orange and blue beads on center)
41.5 x 29.5 inches
...
Category
2010s Abstract Geometric Anila Quayyum Agha Art
Materials
Paper, Mixed Media
Flowers (Three Red Squares and One White)
By Anila Quayyum Agha
Located in NEW YORK, NY
Anila Quayyum Agha
Flowers (Three Red Squares and One White), 2017
Mixed media on paper (red square with white beads in center square; second square cutout with no backing)
29.5 x 29...
Category
2010s Abstract Geometric Anila Quayyum Agha Art
Materials
Paper, Mixed Media
Anila Quayyum Agha art for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a wide variety of authentic Anila Quayyum Agha art available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Anila Quayyum Agha in mixed media, paper and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 21st century and contemporary and is mostly associated with the abstract style. Not every interior allows for large Anila Quayyum Agha art, so small editions measuring 21 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Luciana Levinton, Nancy Baker, and Kati Vilim. Anila Quayyum Agha art prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $14,000 and tops out at $14,600, while the average work can sell for $14,300.