Q&A with Tahia Farhin Haque
Tahia Farhin Haque, originally from Bangladesh, is a photographer and visual artist on a journey of expression. Throughout her life she has been fascinated by images and how they can change perceptions and internal paradigms. Through her artworks, she questions the prejudices and perceptions of society. Her projects are intricately woven by her experiences and observations and her attempt to engage the audience to question the veil of shadows that surround us in our society. Her work’s visual memory field challenges the linear-modernist idea of the past as a distant place, drawing attention to its embodied endurance in and through the narrative. She has worked with The New York Times, exhibited at TATE, Aperture Gallery, Dhaka Art Summit and is a grantee of the Prince Claus Fund. She has a Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry and Biotechnology from North South University and a diploma in photography from Counter Foto.
Briefly describe your thesis project. What themes are you exploring, and in what mediums/with what materials?
My thesis project is about an empty classroom, a classroom where the students will never come back. This classroom is made of 16,000 students who are longer with us in this world. I would write their names on the chalkboard, then for a month I will call out their names in attendance roll call. The installation of the classroom and the performance of the roll call is part of the thesis project, there would be video of me calling the names as well. No matter the place, religion, race, or caste… children are the children of the world. We should mourn for these children who will never go back to the classroom, who lost their live unjustly in the last two years.
What do you hope someone feels when they experience your work?
I hope they can experience empathy, love, and care for children. They mourn for the innocents while they are viewing the work. They can place themselves in these narratives and in some way I hope change is brought.
Tahia Farhin Haque in front of her art. (Photo: Caitlin Custer)
Did you always know this would be your final project? When or how did you figure it out?
I always knew I wanted to make a monument or a memorial for children in some way. In my last semester, I was trying to figure out the form of the artwork. Since performances take a few iterations, it took me some time to finalize the final artwork, I think in March of 2025 I knew all the artifacts and details of the artwork.
What has been surprising as you’ve worked on this project? I knew it was going to be emotional, l but I did not know the extent of how emotionally charged this would be. It is a personal project — even though I am not related or have even met any of the children, I feel they are my own. I am their teacher and I am mourning them as a teacher would.
How does your research interact with this project? My research has been about archive, memory, monument, memorial, and performance; this project interacts with all these elements. It explores how history is rigid, and through performance, we malleate the reality again and again, keeping the memory alive.
What was your path to becoming an artist like? My path to becoming an artist has been a journey of 10 years now. I had my first show when I was nineteen at a gallery. This decade has been at times a bed of roses and at times a bed of thorns. It is not always easy to choose to be an artist. But I feel this is the only profession where I can connect to so many people and tell stories that otherwise would not be told by society.
Describe what it’s been like to make work alongside your cohort. I feel my cohort is so diverse — in mediums, in personalities. They have been generous and it’s been a pleasure to spend this time with them.
Are there any faculty, courses, making spaces, or other WashU resources that have had a big impact on you? Two faculty, Heather Bennett and Denise Ward-Brown, had a huge impact on my trajectory as an artist. They gave me motivation that I could reach for the stars and beyond. It is a gift to have such faith from teachers.
