Artist Laila Khan with one of her works textured with gold leaf; a gold-leaf work of Lord Ganesha (inset) — Asian Age

Laila Khan Furniturewalla began painting at a very young age, although she didn’t hold her first solo exhibition until 2001, in New Delhi. Her latest collection, titled Pulse of Abstraction, was selected by Agora Gallery in New York, for an exhibition, alongside that of other artists like Sharon Brill, Michelle Chu and Donna Howard.

From your first solo exhibition in 2001 to this latest exhibition in New York, please tell us a little about what your journey has been like…what were the important milestones along the journey?

I held my first solo show with Arushi Arts at the Visual Art Gallery in New Delhi in 2001, where I sculpted sand on canvas and used oil and charcoal to represent the fragility and impermanence of human life against the timelessness of architecture. At that time, I felt I was ready to make a public statement about my work after nine years of painting. I have consciously strived to evolve and grow — but evolving has to be natural not forced. I have faced dilemmas, doubts within my own personality and the conflict between being an artist and a woman. When I am painting, I create my own world as art does that: Life outside ceases to be. Now unlike before, after I am finished with a work I detach from it, it leaves me, as it then belongs to the viewer who draws from it. I feel gratified when people come up to me and say how some work of mine that they’ve seen or bought years ago has touched
their lives and inspired them. Agora Gallery saw my work on my website, and wanted to represent me as they felt my recent work in gold leaf and acrylic would resonate well in the West. I have always wanted to show in NY, and it’s interesting to have people from different cultures responding to your work.

This show signals a change from the medium you’ve previously used — oils — to acrylic, gold leaf and pigment. What prompted the shift?
I like to explore different mediums and textures. In 2001, as I mentioned, I sculpted sand and oil on canvas, and then moved to charcoal and oil. Now, I work with acrylic and gold leaf, but in a very contemporary way. I love textures, and the power that gold exudes finds its way on my canvases, almost like a mirror. Oil, however, continues to be the most preferred medium for me.

The feminine form has been a predominant theme in your work from the very start. Why does it exert such a strong fascination for you?

My work is based on the feminine predicament. My canvases explore the mysteries of female beauty, which does not give everything away, reveals yet conceals, charms yet seduces, is inspirational yet melancholy. What strange ambivalent creatures these (women) are, so full of life yet trapped in doll-like lifelessness! My representations of life and beauty often take the form of portraits of women, and in these portraits, women’s faces can be seen as symbols of various emotional states. I call my images “mirrors of internal struggles”.

You began painting at a very young age…what did art mean to you?

Very early in my teens, I loved the sole control of expression one held while painting. In art, there can be no lies, as your work becomes a mirror to your intention; I think intention is the most important factor in art. I enjoyed the solitariness as with his art, the artist creates his or
her own world. No one can add to or subtract from that expression except
the artist, which was
challenging and exciting to me.

How did your family respond to your art, considering they were better known for expressing themselves through the medium of film?

I come from a very artistic family — my father being an actor, filmmaker, editor and writer and my mother a fashion designer. Both appreciated and loved art. My mother is responsible for my being an artist today, as it was her appreciation, encouragement and criticism of my work that led me to pursue art (full time). In my first solo show, I depicted the female nude…there were opinions that I shouldn’t do that in the first public statement of my work as there aren’t too many people who will hang up a nude in their home, but my family saw my expression from a very artistic standpoint and never discouraged me.

You once mentioned that for your 50th solo exhibition, you’d love for the President of India to attend your show…

I may have said (as Dr A.P.J Abdul Kalam was the President at the time), and I am an admirer of his. He loves art, and I’d still love for him to attend a show.