15th September – 1st October 2011
‘Building Desires’, curated by Gabriella Daris, showcases one part of an ongoing
photographic project by Mahtab Hussain which explores the complexities of
‘identity’ and ‘self’ within the contemporary British Pakistani community.
This particular aspect of the project focuses on a burgeoning internal conflict
of identity projected by an agitated younger generation of British born
Pakistani males. It considers the notion that this group is split between their
immediate and traditional environment – an intricate system of cultural and
religious practises which puts the collective whole first against the West’s
persuasive ideology of the individual. Existing between this two conflicting
worlds, Hussain’s images witness these young men’s concept of individuality
and masculinity, most prominently expressed through a ‘performance’ and
show of ‘acting hard’ and their attempt to break down society’s stereotypical
notions of a Pakistani male living in the West.
Image:Building Desires – Safwaan Saeed © Mahtab Hussain
