INTERNATIONAL EXAMINER
By Danielle Quenelle - October 23, 2020
Lakshmi Muirhead and Humaira Abid carve out space for the stories that are hardest to tell
Two current shows in Seattle’s Pioneer Square neighborhood examine the influence of external forces like ancestral history and inherited belief systems in shaping the female experience from the inside out. Lakshmi Muirhead’s There Is Always A Before and Humaira Abid’s Sacred Games both take an unflinching look at how family, culture, and socialization inform a woman’s place and perceived value in society, as well as the development of her identity. Lakshmi’s intimate process of self-inquiry is on full view in a confident series of large scale works, while Humaira’s intricate paintings and sculptures narrate the painful stories of those who are forbidden to tell them first hand.