Reunion 2018

Curator: Here we have Salman Toor’s 2018 painting, "Reunion," crafted with oil paint. Editor: It's strikingly intimate, isn’t it? The palette feels intentionally subdued, almost melancholic, but there’s an undeniable warmth in their embrace. Curator: Indeed. Toor’s work often navigates themes of identity, belonging, and queer narratives within diasporic contexts. Consider the positioning of these figures within a potentially exclusionary gaze, and how the reunion can act as a sanctuary, both real and imagined. Editor: I’m drawn to the material presence of the oil paint itself. Notice the brushstrokes, visible and almost urgent. It gives the piece a feeling of immediacy, as if we're witnessing a private moment made public. The clothing, the fabric—it's all rendered with attention, indicative of social roles but also intimacy. Curator: Precisely. The tender touch suggested in their intertwined bodies pushes against traditional norms and asserts visibility and validity of such displays of queer affection and emotional support. This can read as a subversive act of resistance against restrictive social structures. Editor: And I'd say it also touches on themes of labor, not simply artistic but emotional as well, expressed in how the materials convey texture— the soft scarf around one neck, contrasting with what looks like rougher-hewn sweaters. Each detail contributes to an understanding of intimacy fostered through shared experience, labor and love. Curator: Certainly. Furthermore, the fact that he sets these encounters against simple backgrounds only foregrounds that it is about community, history and politics rather than individual portraiture—the lack of details emphasizes the importance of visibility itself and communal solidarity rather than specificity. Editor: It makes me consider the politics embedded in artistic labor itself— the active deconstruction and rebuilding inherent within this particular process is important for our larger discourse regarding making things tangible to observe their labor as well. Curator: Absolutely. What resonates with me is that "Reunion" becomes not just an aesthetic statement, but also a statement on human connection and our ability to survive by sharing love amidst broader societal power dynamics. Editor: Yes. The way that Toor manipulates oil paint to make something that looks so spontaneous, immediate really lets the work invite discussions around art production. I find his material decisions so thought-provoking!