Verma

This gently haunting portrait opens the door into the imagination of Shazia and her unique ability to capture the people she has known throughout her life. Shazia steers the viewer’s eye to Verma’s beautifully distinctive quirks, whilst suggesting a deeper story lies beneath the surface of the canvas.

Verma holds our gaze. There is a glimmer of something unsaid in her eyes, a story untold. They are a window into a soul that seems to be caught between worlds, teetering on the edge of the known and the unknown.

With her cascading hair, catching the light in a way that creates a halo-like effect, ‘Verma’ is inspired by a classmate from Shazia’s early school years.

“‘Semolina, vermicelli hair’, I once described the hair of a girl in class 4 to my mum,” says Shazia. “My mum used to make a pudding made with strands of roasted vermicelli pasta. They swam in a sweetened cardamom custard with floating rafts of cinnamon sticks.”

Her hair appears almost luminous, each strand meticulously detailed to create a sense of realism and fragility.

Verma’s ethereal presence and delicate features feel mysterious yet innocent upon the dark background. This contrast is created using an artistic technique called chiaroscuro, which creates pronounced distinction between areas of light and dark within a composition. This technique can be widely seen in the Renaissance and Baroque movements.

“From palette to canvas the story unfolds, it’s not with words that is told. It holds the eye and captures the heart. It’s a story untold narrated through art. Behind the stare is a tale of mystery a memory deep wrapped up in history.”

Find out more about Shazia or alternatively shop more art here.