The (Em)Power List 2018: Sarah Naqvi

By using hand stitching and embroidery to talk about taboos and body shaming, this textile design student empowers women to look at themselves naturally, as they were intended to

Sarah Naqvi
21, Artist

Ahmedabad-based textile design student Sarah Naqvi’s work stresses on the importance of being comfortable in our own bodies. From watercolour paintings to cloth and woollen sculptures of human body parts, her art is a celebration of body positivity and self-acceptance. By using hand stitching and embroidery to talk about taboos and body shaming, Naqvi empowers women to look at themselves naturally, as they were intended to. Her unconventional use of material, medium and technique to create art makes her work stand out. She is known to use fabric manipulation, dyeing and appliqué on sanitary napkins, bra cups and tampons. Her usage of these products is a bid to connect topics — like menstruation and ideals of size — that need to be spoken about for women to be able to reclaim their bodies. Although hugely popular on social media platforms, she has been vocal about her artworks being pulled down from digital platforms under the guise of not adhering to the guidelines.

“Sarah Naqvi is one of the rarest artists we’ve got today. Her work is about human beings, not about men or women. It is about freedom and open-mindedness which are the foundations of feminism and body positivity.”
– Tanvi Pinjarkar, 25, Product Stylist, Mumbai

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