Qizilbash’s drawings hold the potency to bend time. The disoriented viewer is left conflicted and cannot adjudicate whether the scenes are from a distant by gone or an apocalyptic, post-human future. Furthermore, in light of the recent events such as the tragic Beirut blast and the global lockdowns because of the pandemic, it is a disconcerting realization ofhow current the emptiness and the decrepit rubbles feel.
Saba Qizilbash grew up in Abu Dhabi, UAE and later moved back to Pakistan. She graduated from the National College of Art (NCA) with a BFA degree in Painting.
The same year, she went to the Sitka Center for Art and Ecology on the idyllic coast of Oregon on an artist residency. She spent the following year in San Francisco collaborating with local artists. She later enrolled in Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), graduating in 2004 with an MA degree in Art Education. It was at RISD that Saba was introduced to Curriculum Development and Community Programming under the guidance of Dr Paul Sproll.
She has designed and facilitated a number of workshops for the marginalized in Lahore, Sheikhupura, New Delhi, Dubai and Rhode Island. At present, she teaches at the American University in Dubai and maintains a fulltime studio. Her works have been showcased in Lahore, Karachi, Dubai, Srinagar, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Florida and Providence.
