Zenab Khan

Where do you live: UK
Your education: I have a Bachelors in Creative Multimedia + a Masters in Illustration
Website | Instagram 

Your work “Panopticon” plays with the theme of paranoia and the uncanny. Can you explain how you chose the elements for this piece and how they contribute to this theme?

Funny story about this piece. I had decided to do my contextual thesis on Lovecraftian horror since I was really eager to explore the genre of horror in different types of visual mediums and the ways in which it’s conveyed. We were doing collages that day, something I’d never really experimented with before. I was a bit surprised at how enjoyable I found it to be! I think a very interesting element of horror is the way eyes are utilized to unsettle the viewer. The way I used eyes in my piece both on the subject and the surroundings was to exacerbate the idea of ‘is the woman being watched or is she watching you?’

How does your South Asian background influence your approach to art, particularly in terms of identity and belonging?

I think I’m someone who has always struggled with identity, since I’ve spent my teenage to adult years in different places around the globe. While I don’t make it super blatant, I think all my art is a product of my lived experiences. Themes of androgyny, gender, belonging and not fitting in a box always resonate with me and I’ve always wanted to make people who relate not feel like they’re alone in this.

Zenab Khan, Panopticon

In your artist statement, you mention inspiring creatives from underrepresented groups. How do you feel the industry can better support these communities?

I think the first step is always to acknowledge that there is a problem that needs to be addressed. Only about 11.4% of the creative industry jobs are filled by Black, Asian and other ethnic minorities. Along with cultural and societal biases towards creative careers, when you hardly see yourself being represented in these fields it really does make you feel like maybe you’re not welcome here, and that sucks! There are however, many initiatives being launched to support these groups as of late which is great! But once again, there’s certainly a bias in hiring that should be eliminated.

Collage seems to be a key medium for you. What draws you to collage, and how do you decide which materials to use for your mixed media pieces?

I think collages are fun! My only creative outlet used to be drawing, but sometimes you want to channel it in other ways too. I’ve found working with mixed media to be cathartic, the limitations of it almost works to your advantage because you start thinking of other creative ways to achieve an artistic vision. If there’s something I feel I can’t achieve on paper by using newspapers and old magazines then I move to digital to enhance it further. The possibilities are endless!

What role does the uncanny play in your work, and how do you ensure that the viewer experiences this emotion when looking at your pieces?

I think having an audience of some kind to gauge your work certainly helps! For my MA thesis I did a lot of research and asked people what they think via questionnaires and even added a bonus question of what they consider to be their own personal favourite piece of horror media. I feel this really helped me figure out a visual style for my work.

Zenab Khan, Editorial portrait

Can you talk about the relationship between traditional mediums (like magazines) and digital elements in your artwork? How do you blend these worlds?

I think traditional mediums give your work a more organic feel, there’s textures and lighting effects you can certainly mimic digitally but they truly shine best when it’s, say, a photograph of a cutout from a magazine. While digital can be used to enhance this by further allowing you to add, remove and cut any parts of the image to your liking without the fear of destroying it permanently.

What advice would you give to young creatives from underrepresented communities who are looking to break into the art world?

I think my main and biggest advice is to never stop trying. While it’s great that art is becoming more accessible to more and more people nowadays, with resources and tutorials being free to access online, it’s also gotten much more competitive. It’s easy to get discouraged and give up. To that I’d say keep doing what you love and push through. Remember that art is something you can create and learn at any age, at any point in your life.