Rana Begum, an artist known for her work with bright colours and geometric shapes.
She blurs the boundaries between sculpture, painting, and architecture in order to create unique pieces that are a mix of all three.
Sean Fleming
Rana Begum's No.1187 Mesh and No. 1193 Mesh are on display at Rice University in Houston until December 17, 2022. These colourful mesh sculptures explore the "material and conceptual possibilities of public artwork."
No.1187 Mesh is installed in front of the Moody Center for the Arts, designed by California architect Michael Maltzan in 2017. (Photo: Sean Fleming)
The Rice University Art Gallery was a source of inspiration for me for many years, from the installation of Yasuaki Onishi's topographical reverse of volume in 2012 to the more scholarly Learning from Houston project by Atelier Bow-Wow and Rice University professor Jesús Vassallo a few years later. I was sad to see it closed in 2017, as it meant the end of the consistent display of site-specific artworks (a couple of other examples are here and here). However, I was pleased to recently discover that Rana Begum, an artist born in Bangladesh and living in London, has created two new site-specific artworks that bring back that same feeling. Photographs of these artworks are below. No. 1187 Mesh and No. 1193 Mesh were both commissioned by Rice's Moody Center for the Arts. As you can see in the photographs below, the two artworks are quite striking.
![Begum, known for focusing on the interplay between light, color, and form, uses "industrial materials, repetitive geometric patterns, and vibrant colors [to] brilliantly activate the surrounding architecture," per a statement from the Moody Center for the Arts. (Photo: Sean Fleming)](https://ojo2mx38l6.execute-api.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/image/eyJidWNrZXQiOiJ1bmktYmxvZyIsImtleSI6InRlL3RlYW0yMTIvdGVhbTIxMjIwMjItMTEtMjhUMTMtMTktMTItNTI5MjQzLmpwZyIsImVkaXRzIjp7InJlc2l6ZSI6eyJ3aWR0aCI6ODAwLCJmaXQiOiJpbnNpZGUifSwianBlZyI6eyJxdWFsaXR5Ijo4NX0sImZsYXR0ZW4iOmZhbHNlLCJub3JtYWxpc2UiOmZhbHNlfX0=)
Begum, known for focusing on the interplay between light, colour, and form, uses "industrial materials, repetitive geometric patterns, and vibrant colours [to] brilliantly activate the surrounding architecture," per a statement from the Moody Center for the Arts. (Photo: Sean Fleming)
The modular panels with pink, orange, and yellow coatings were partially assembled inside the art centre before being moved to the front of the building. (Photo courtesy of Moody Center for the Arts)
The artworks mark the first time Begum has used mesh panels for an outdoor location. (An earlier indoor installation can be seen on the artist's Instagram feed.) (Photo: Sean Fleming)
The layering of the colourfully coated mesh grids is mesmerizing when seen up close. (Photo: Sean Fleming)
Begum's pieces are part of Urban Impressions: Experiencing the Global Contemporary Metropolis, a group show at the Moody Center for the Arts organized by its curator, Frauke V. Josenhans. (Photo: Sean Fleming)
The second piece, No. 1193 Mesh, is located next to Rice School of Architecture's Anderson Hall, designed by Staub and Rather in 1947 and expanded in 1981 by James Stirling and Michael Wilford. (Photo: Sean Fleming)
Located remotely from each other on Rice University's campus, the installations are meant to reflect "the macro implications" of Houston's "sprawling development and ceaseless construction." (Photo: Sean Fleming)
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