Words are the scaffolding of buildings, the moods of street blocks, and testaments to the history of neighborhoods. Cityscapes is an exploration of the city's moods -- wild, rigid, or claustrophobic -- and of the feelings it evokes in its passersby and denizens. Cities remove the comfortable distance between different economic classes and ethnicities and force interaction; they are lives condensed, the playground of politics, the fire and the cauldron.

I became interested in cityscapes after moving to Brighton. This series of recent works ranges from realistic skylines to the abstraction of loose blocks of colors. The relationship between building and sky is also very important to me, as it is something I am constantly aware of, especially when traveling and witnessing new combinations.

Florence is a skyless city until you suddenly come upon the repose of the river. Amsterdam's buildings lean into the street because the wide windows accommodate the hauling of furniture to upper stories (a necessity due to narrow stairwells). In New York City, sky is a limited commodity. And my relationship to Boston is always changing, deepening with each new neighborhood with which I become familiar, and with the events in them that I find important.

I think of myself as someone who does not belong to any one country -- I am American and Pakistani, and I grew up in Indonesia, France and Switzerland until Lexington became my home in 1994. A graduate of Lexington High School (Class of 2000), I received my Bachelor's degree from Skidmore College, where I double-majored in Film and Studio Art. After working locally as a graphic designer, I went to Karachi, Pakistan, where I taught art at several institutions. I have recently returned, and am looking forward to settling back into the Boston area and reintegrating myself back into the city.

I will hold a reception on Tuesday, September 5, from 6-8 pm in the library's Meeting Room. The public is invited to meet me and to browse my exhibit. To see other work or find contact information, visit www.zehrakhan.com.