‘Méré Humd(r)um’ or ‘mere humdrum’?

Aicon Gallery presents a group show, entitled ‘Méré Humd(r)um’, a group exhibit of contemporary artworks from a new generation of Pakistani artists at its New York venue.

The show features up and coming talented practitioners from the country, including Roohi Ahmed, Cyra Ali, Shoaib Mehmood, Hassan Mujtaba, Sara Khan, Rehana Mangi, Abdullah M. I. Syed, Seher Naveed, Aisha Rahim, Iqra Tanveer and Ehsan ul Haq. The Urdu term, Humdum, which forms part of the title is formed after having removed one syllable from its mundane English counterpart. It means someone so close that yours and their breath are one.

The peculiar word Méré, with even less distinguishing it from the almost pejorative, minimal ‘mere’ - the English language word , is infused with a sense of belonging. It actually means mine. Together put, the cluster of words, Méré Humdum, becomes a note of endearment for someone who can be a mentor, a lover or a friend.

In a linguistic coincidence though, it’s just a syllable away from ‘mere humdrum’ as in English.” Today, after over sixty years of independence, the ordinary, the humdrum, the everyday, remains a coveted object of longing for most countrymen of Pakistan - the kind of longing one tends to reserve for a lover.

A day when there’s no violence on the streets, no bombing; when the school bus gets delayed only by traffic jams is a day of celebration and thanksgiving. The artists in this show have created artworks in response to the violence and chaos surrounding them, yet much of it is imbued with an eternal and intrinsic optimism, which stands in contrast to the uncertainty and instability from which it has emerged.

Much like of the 1930s’ Germany’s Weimar Republic, an odd dichotomy is there in place with today’s young Pakistani artists. Even as their social, political and economic situations are spinning out of control, the visual arts-scape , in this landscape of circumscribed opportunities, is experiencing a transformation and creative blooming, as evident in this show.