Sarah Ahmad

The American Dream

Through her installation, The American Dream, Sarah Ahmad creates an unexpected sanctuary, space where visitors might be moved to seek solace and renewal, to heal from generations of pain and trauma. At the center of her work, Ahmad has constructed a simple canvas tent that she modeled after those that were quickly constructed as an emergency shelter after the 1921 Race Massacre, as well as those that the artist saw while growing up in Lahore, Pakistan. Marigolds cover the structure, their fragrance, and color working together in creating a peaceful idyll, albeit one of the symbolic associations.

Marigolds are used in Day of the Dead celebrations and traditional South Asian ceremonies such as weddings and funerals. On Ahamd’s tents, however, the marigolds can also signal the firebombs that destroyed “Black Wall Street” and the US drone bombs that shattered her own northern Pakistan. Visitors are invited to tend to their personal wellness while also remembering that healing cannot take place without acknowledging trauma and its generational impact.

The American Dream will be on display on May 26 through May 31 from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm at Oxley Nature Center, 6700 Mohawk Blvd, Tulsa, OK. The installation will remain after June 1st onwards 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, Closing Date TBD.