o live is to create. The mere act of living, to continue to live a life, to create bonds and conversation, to fall and get up, to get sick and get well, all points to one thing: we are creating miracles every day simply by breathing.

Talha Rathore, a miniaturist practicing more contemporary expressions of her craft, believes that organic forms, and those found in nature, speak profoundly. With Shades Of Tranquility, Rathore literally gets down to the root of existence, viewing the fact of life through microorganisms, that when studied can reveal that they hold a world within themselves; not good or bad, just a complete world.

What is more striking about Rathore’s work, introspective though her concerns and their iterations are, is the skill that goes into each piece. Her chosen medium is gouache and archival ink on wasli, the handmade paper preferred by miniaturists.

The pieces aren’t miniature works by any stretch of imagination, but even on the larger scales, one can spot the miniaturist’s mark, the painstaking brushwork, and the precise mark making.

The result, of speaking about a theme that is close to her heart, while using a medium that we assume is just as close, Rathore creates a poignant, beautiful body of work, which was on display at the Chawkandi Gallery in Karachi over the last week.