ZAKKIR HUSSAIN BORN IN 1970 IN CHANDIROOR , ALAPPUZHA , A COASTAL VILLAGE OF KERALA.ZAKKIR RECEIVED DEGREE IN PAINTING FROM THE COLLEGE OF FINE ARTS TRIVANDRUM IN 1994 AND MASTERS IN GRAPHICS FROM M.S. UNIVERSITY OF BARODA , GUJARAT-1997.

ZAKKIR INSERTS A SORT OF TABLEAU VIVANTE IN HIS WORKS. REPRESENTING THE STRUGGLE BETWEEN THE ENERGIES AND IMPULSES OF HUMAN BODIES AND FORCE OF SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS EXERTING   CONTROL OVER IT.  HIS UNIVERSE IS DENSE WITH PEOPLE, DISCARDED OBJECTS, GHETTOISED SPACES CAUGHT IN AN ARRAY OF  CIRCUMSTANCES .THE EXCESS OF VISUAL IMAGERIES IN  THE SURFACE OF MANY OF HIS  WORKS  IS  AN OUTCOME OF THE INTENSITY AND SIMULTANEITY  IN  WHICH  HIS POLITICO  - LINGUASTIC STRATEGIES CONFRONT WITH MULTIPLE NOTIONS OF REALITIES. THESE VISIONS ARE NOT FANTASIES , BUT ARE CRITITCAL CONCERNS THAT THE ARTIST RE- COGNIZES IN THE INTERSTICES OF LANGUAGE , IN ITS INTERVALS.  

FOR MORE THAN A DECADE, ZAKKIR HUSSAIN’S MIXED MEDIA WORKS HAVE RELENTLESSLY TRACKED THE TRANSITIONAL SPACES OF THE EVERYDAY. BRIGHT HUES, GESTURAL LINES AND SKEINS OF PENTIMENTO MARK THE AGITATED SURFACES OF HIS IMAGES IN A WAY THAT SEEMS TO EVOKE MOVEMENT AND DYNAMIC TRANSFORMATION. HOWEVER, A CLOSER LOOK AT THE DEVELOPMENT OF HIS OEUVRE REVEALS THAT HIS COMPOSITIONS ARE CONSISTENTLY UNDERWRITTEN BY A LITANY OF STABLE MOTIFS: THE REPEATED HOUSE, THE BOUNDED OR WOUNDED BODY AND THE EMPTY DRESS. EACH FORM, THOUGH RENDERED STABLE THORUGH REPRESENTATION, IS POSITIONED AS A MUTABLE VARIABLE IN THE ARTIST’S VISUAL VOCABULARY. WHETHER ONE CONSIDERS HUSSAIN’S LARGE SUSTAINED WORKS OR HIS SMALLER STUDIES OF INDIVIDUAL FIGURES, HIS CONTINUAL RESURRECTION AND REDEPLOYMENT OF KEY LEITMOTIFS SERVES AS A DECISIVE ARTISITC STRATEGY. EACH DISCRETE ITERATION RESONATES BEYOND THE IMAGE TO SERVE AS COMMENTARY ON A WORLD MARKED ENTROPY RATHER THAN EVOLUTION. HIS DISJUNCTIVE PAIRING OF ORGANIC AND INORGANIC, THE ACTUAL AND ILLUSORY TESTS THE LIMITS OF THE PERCEPTIBLE AND THE EXPERIENTIAL TO OFFER KEY INSIGHT INTO THE OFTEN-CONFLICTED FORCES THAT ANIMATE THE CONTEMPORARY.

ZAKKIR'S WORKS ARE THE DECLARATION AGAINST THE ORDERING OF THE WORLD . THEY ARE ANTI DISCIPLINARY AGENTS WHICH TRAVEL THROUGH THE FORGOTTEN  AND FORBIDDEN MEMORIES AND HISTORIES . THEY ARE THE MARKER OF GENEALOGY OF ABANDONED HISTORICAL  MEMORIES , TRACES OF  SILENCED VOICES ; AN ANTHOLOGY OF THE EVER- EXPANDING  TERRAIN OF SUFFERINGS . THEY ARE IN THE PROCESS  OF  BECOMING LANGUAGE OF UNSPEAKABLE. 

ZAKKIR  HUSSAIN EXHIBITED HIS WORKS IN  SOLOS AND GROUP SHOWS IN INDIA AND THE DIFFERENT PART OF THE WORLD .

HIS NOTED SOLO SHOWS ARE    " PROCRUSTEAN  POSSIBILITIES ", THE GUILD ART GALLERY MUMBAI 2018, "TRANSLATING THE SILENCE ", VADEHRA ART GALLERY NEW DELHI,  " PROLONGED HOURS OF DISGUISED SITUATIONS ", GALLERY SKE BANGALORE 2015 ,  "PRINTS AND DRAWINGS " SOLO  SHOW  ORGANISED BY D. DIVAKAR , MUSUEM OF CONFLICTORIUM ,AHMADABAD , GUJARAT - 2016,

"ZERO TOLERANCE" VADEHRA ART GALLERY , NEW DELHI-  2012,    "103 DEGREE CENTIGRADE YELLOW FEVER AND OTHER WORKS" ,

GALLERY SKE BANGALORE -2010, " RE - TURN OF THE UNHOLY ", VADEHRA ART GALLERY NEW DELHI 2008, 

"EMERGING FROM THE WOMB OF SCAPE GOAT " KAASHI ART GALLERY , MATTANCHERYY , KOCHI-2007

"RECENT WORKS " CURATED BY DR. KATHLEEN L WYMA , DRRAVIDIA ART GALLERY , KOCHI - 2003, 

"SOLO SHOW IN NAVARATNA APARTMENT" BANGALORE ORGANISED BY BANGALORE AND SWISS ARTISTS ORGANISATION - 2002, 

"DRAWINGS AND PRINTS",  DH HALL ERNAKULAM , SPONSERED BY  KERALA  LALITKALA ACCADEMY 2000

"FRAGMENTS FROM THE DEVASTATED LAND ", DRAAVIDIA ART AND ERFORMENCE GALLERY , MATTANCHERRY , KOCHI - 1997.

ZAKKIR HUSSAIN WAS INVITED TO PARTICIPATE TO THE FIRST KOCHI MUSIRIZ BIENNALE CURATED BY BOSE KRISHNAMACHARI AND RIYAS KOMU 2012. HIS GROUP SHOWS INCLUDE CLOAK AND DAGGER: INDIA’S FICTIONAL TIMES CURATED BY SHAHEEN MERALI AT ZUZEUM ART CENTRE RIGA LATVIA-2021, LOKAME THARAVADU  ( THE WORLD IS ONE FAMILY) CURATED BY BOSE KRISHNAMACHARI AT ALAPPUZHA KERALA-2021. WORKS ON PAPER - MAPPING SUBJECTS AND METHODS,  THE GUILD ART GALLERY , ALIBAUGH , MUMBAI -2020,   "FUTURE  PRESENT "  CURATED BY SATYANAD MOHAN , GALLERY WHITE , BARODA -2018, "MATTANCHERRY " CURATED BY RIYAS KOMU , URU ART HARBOUR KOCHI 2017,”AGAIN AND YET AGAIN”, GALLERY OED MATTANCHERRY, KOCHI, “CONTEMPORARY CONTIGENCIES”, CURATED BY DR. KATHLEEN L WYMA , GALLERY OED MATTANCHERRY, KOCHI-2014,  "PEAKSHIFT EFFECT" , CURATED BY GAYATRI SINHA  VADEHRA BART GALLERY, NEW DELHI 2013,  "SKODA  CONTEMPORARY ART SHOW" , NATIONAL GALLERY OF MODERN ART , NEWE DELHI -2012 ,"A FURTHER GLOBAL ENCOUNTER", , GROSVENER VADEHRA, LONDON  - 2012.  , “A FLOATING OBJECT , THE GUILD COLLECTION- SERIES-1”, THE GUILD MUMBAI-2012, “NATURAL BODIES SUBVERTED CONONS” VADEHRA ART GALLERY, NEW DELHI-2011, "DRAWINGS", GALLERY KRINZINGER , VIENNA- 2010 “BAGGAGE BURDEN/COMFORT” REPRESENTED BY GALLERY SKE, BANGALORE, AT ARCO MADRID, SPAIN-2009. “ INTERLUDE, VENICE / CASTLE” THE GUILD MUMBAI-2008, ART HK- GROUP SHOW INTERNATIONAL ART FAIR HONG KONG- 2008 ,    "KRINZINGER PROJECT "  , GALLERY KRINZINGER , VEINNA -2008 , “READING PAINT”- GALLERY SOULFLOWER BANGKOK-2007, “SHADOW LINES”-GROUP SHOW OF DRAWINGS , VADEHRA ART GALLERY, NEW DELHI-2006,  “NEW VOICES”,THE GUILD  ART GALLERY , NEW YORK- 2006, “SOFT AND SHARP” TWO PERSONS SHOW- THE GUILD  ART GALLERY MUMBAI-2006, “DOUBLE ENDERS” CONCEPTUALISED BY BOSE KRISHNAMACHARI, MUMBAI, NEW DELHI, BANGALORE AND KOCHI-2005, “CHANGE OF ADDRESS” THE GUILD ART GALLERY MUMBAI-2005

AWARDS

• ZAKKIR HUSSAIN RECEIVED THE AIFACS AWARD FOR DRAWING -1997
• LALITHKALA ACADEMY STATE AWARD FOR DRAWING -2000
• THE JUNIOR FELLOWSHIP FROM THE KERALA LALITHKALA ACADEMY-2012.

ZAKKIR HUSSAIN LIVES AND WORKS IN ERNAKULAM , KOCHI , KERALA.