Rasheed Araeen's first comprehensive retrospective opens at Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art

Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art in Gateshead, UK, presents the first full survey of Rasheed Araeen's six-decade career from October 19, 2018, to January 27, 2019. The Pakistani-born British artist's work spans early paintings from 1950s Karachi to minimalist sculptures after his 1964 move to London, influenced by his civil engineering background and Anthony Caro. Political pieces from the 1970s address racism and colonialism, including 'For Oluwale' (1971–1973) about a Nigerian immigrant and the performance documentation 'Paki Bastard' (1977/2016). Araeen founded the journal Black Phoenix in 1978, later Third Text, highlighted in the exhibition via 'The Reading Room' (2017). Notable works include 'Look Mama… Macho!' (1983–86) with Margaret Thatcher's 1978 quote, the 'Cruciform' series (1985–1996) examining Western hegemony, and 'White Stallion' (1987–91) featuring Saddam Hussein and Norman Schwarzkopf. The show also features his 1969 John Moores Painting Prize runner-up 'BoO' and recent 'Opus' paintings (2016–17) linking geometric abstraction to medieval Islam. Araeen's practice blends formalist geometry with political critique, addressing immigration and cultural imperialism.