Ikon Youth Programme build Mitti Ka Ghar
By James Cockbill
Two weeks ago Ikon Youth Programme (IYP) were given the opportunity to construct Mahtab Hussain’s installation, Mitti Ka Ghar – a scaled replica of a traditional Pakistani clay house. The work showcases miniature clay houses and a display of Mahtab’s tintype photographic portraits made by visitors to The Auspicious Journey this summer.
Here are their images and comments about working with Mahtab.
![“The most interesting thing was the slow experimental process of finding the best way to adhere the clay to the straw […] meeting Mathab and the feeling of the cold rough clay.” Andy](http://blackcountryvoyages.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/DSC_4884.jpg)
“The most interesting thing was the slow experimental process of finding the best way to adhere the clay to the straw […] meeting Mahtab and the feeling of the cold rough clay.” Andy
“I think the most interesting thing about the Clay house wasn’t even the clay house, it was more about the artist himself. By making it I got the chance to ask some questions I’ve held back on and I could ask a person who, him and I, have so much in common.” Harry
“The most interesting part of installing the clay house was doing so within the gallery itself, knowing as a result the work will operate as an ephemeral event that can only be experienced for a short window and, thus, reliant on documentation and conversation to continue its legacy and the focal narrative. So being a part of facilitating that and helping an artist’s vision materialise” Josiah
I asked Mahtab how important it was for people of different backgrounds to research into their own culture and heritage and I know now the true meaning of his words. That it is important that people of diverse backgrounds research into their heritage so if you are from a different culture you tend to shy away from them to fit in.” Harry