A new Sikh art exhibit is scheduled to be held in New York city to showcase community pride in their religious and cultural practices. The initiative aims to spread awareness about the religion in the United States.
The exhibit is expected to unveiled around the 15th anniversary of 9/11. A pair of UK-based photographers, Amit and Naroop will click portraits of Sikh Americans under 'The Sikh Project'. The project is mounted by The Sikh Coalition. The photography exhibit will explores the beauty, symbolism and style of the Sikh articles of faith.
Times of India reported that, the two photographers said that, "We are very excited! In the US, it will serve as an educational piece as well as an art project as the awareness of the Sikh identity is still misunderstood; so we are hoping it will have a wider impact."
"Being Sikh photographers, we wanted to show them that in our culture, the beard has been a part of the Sikh identity for hundreds of years," they said.
"The content and context resonated with people from different backgrounds as it is not just about Sikhs, it's about pride for your identity.
"The two want their latest project to "stand up to the UK Singh Project and if anything do even better than it".
"In the UK, we have witnessed how powerful art can be in positively educating the broader public about the Sikh community. We can't wait to begin photographing the Sikh American experience and sharing those stories with the world as well."
"The subjects involved have seen the success we have had, so they are excited to be involved. It's the complete opposite of the UK Singh project as nobody wanted to be involved at first and it took a while for it to build momentum."
"Each one of the subjects has a story to tell, which will sit alongside the portrait. Some are positive, some are more dramatic, but through the stories, visitors of the exhibition will get to learn what it means to be an American Sikh, both in identity and also in spirit."
"An accompanying video interview of each subject will allow visitors of the exhibition to learn more about the way Sikhs are treated, both positively and negatively, and the courage it takes for the subjects to continue to wear their articles of faith," they added.
"It is traditional in content but the execution is modern and contemporary. Hopefully this has allowed it to spread to a wider audience. Has it been successful? It's hard to judge. People have to be open to learn and understand other faiths and identities. All we can do is to try our best to spread the message. From the response we have had, it appears to have done the job, but there are always more people to reach."
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Nandini
