Rising Waters

This series of paintings refer to Pakistan’s great flood of 2010 resulting from heavy monsoon rains, which affected the ancient Indus River basin in the Himalayas. One-fifth of Pakistan's total land area was underwater, with 20 million affected and displaced in one of the largest floods in Pakistan’s history.  Using icons from Hindu mythology, I explore this narrative of rising waters and the environmental impact of man.

In Hindu mythology, the gods created Manu, the first man, who gave life to all humans. According to legend, he was the earth's first king and the ancestor of all the kings of India. The most famous tale involving Manu tells of a great flood that destroyed everything on earth. When the flood came, Manu used a rope to tie his boat to a large horn growing out of a fish. Pulling the ship through the rough waters, the fish came to the Himalaya Mountains and waited until the waters receded. Manu, half man, half fish rises above the urban cities that have been submerged in the waters below.