How Artist Shayema Rahim Used Art to Remain Connected to People
The art that has emerged following the COVID-19 pandemic has been nothing short of thought-provoking. Although galleries, museums and showcases were shut down for much of the past year, artists still continued to express themselves through their work. Dallas-based artist Shayema Rahim took strict approaches to quarantine, and although the isolation was depressing to her, she channeled those emotions and let them reflect into her artwork.
Like all of us, the time spent alone forced Rahim to reevaluate her priorities and change her perspective on what she finds important. To her, time is the most important thing.
“We tend to take life for granted,” says Rahim. “During COVID, we lost people. We had all these unexpected deaths of people my age and younger people. This taught me that what is really important, which is making memories with people; my dear ones, my friends, my family. Cherishing that time is what really matters.”
Rahim has typically utilized batik and encaustic art techniques, and during quarantine, she found herself painting more human figures. She says painting images of people helped her feel more connected to them, due to the fact that she opted to remain isolated from public settings.
