Beed 0244, oil and enamel on panel 24" x 24"
Company Paintings
In the Company Paintings, enlarged, silhouetted North American weeds and cultivars are overlaid with visual references to India and Syria. Common weeds such as crabgrass and pigweed are set against stark black-and-white imagery referencing Syrian architecture and a glowing palette of Hindu devotional colors. These juxtapositions bring together elements of nature, architecture, and decorative traditions from different places.
The series title refers to “Company Paintings,” a genre of work commisioned by Indian artists for British East India Company officials in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. These paintings documented India’s plants, animals, architecture, and people, combining Indian artistic traditions with European tastes. My series draws on this history of visual documentation while reimagining it through contemporary patterns, color, and imagery. Echoing the serial nature of these historical works, each painting is titled after a remote Indian city and its numerical telephone area code.
The entire series was created using just four silkscreens, printed in different combinations. The surfaces are slightly raised and tactile, made by screening high-gloss enamel and matte oil paint through very porous screen meshes.
All WORKS 24” 24”, oil on panel, 2011-2020
