Ishma

Ishma (b. 2002, Lahore) is a Lahore-based artist and a graduate of Kinnaird College for Women. Her most recent exhibition was in New York with Daira Global, and her work has also been showcased at Alhamra Art Gallery, Shakir Ali Museum, O Art Space, The Reservoir, and VM Art Gallery, among others. How do you measure the difference between being held and being held back? When something is taken under the guise of care, does intention alter the nature of the loss, or does the absence remain absolute? These are the questions Ishma returns to in her work. She reflects on the ways small deprivations accumulate over time, shaping how we move through the world. Objects, spaces, and repeated gestures in her paintings become conduits for storytelling, carrying memory, presence, and absence. These excerpts and this body of work bring two moments from Echo’s journal into wearable form. Each piece holds ideas of power, consequence, and the loneliness that follows certain choices.