The recent works of Juneer Kibria are very experimental both conceptually and aesthetically. He creates a juxtaposition of stylistic elements in a series of abstract, yet emotional pieces that focus on the fragility of memory.

Memories are semi-permanent in nature and often times flawed.. Many pieces of memory can be lost, changed or buried by the person unconsciously. They could be shattered memories of loved ones past, or the ones of something totally arbitrary. Juneer Kibria’s work represents memories as fossil-like, yet also fragile and transitory. The subjects are not literal memories, but they are universal studies of how fragile memory can be.

Unlike the typical media used for painting, he uses encaustic (wax and oil paint), collages of paper, wood, and resin to create layers of textures. He utilizes these mediums to create a juxtaposition of permanence and fragility; such is that of memory. The way Juneer Kibria applies encaustic to create an abrasive, rock-like texture mimics a fossilized environment. The resin is skillfully used like it is bubbling amber freezing objects in time, yet it is also used to resemble shattered glass. The collage of wood and paper in his works are fragments of memory, but they are also chipped and burnt.

Juneer Kibria also uses recognizable symbols like footprints, leaves, and words. For instance, in the two works, Ode to a wall I & II, he uses a footprint in the painting to express the loss of a person. The footprint seems fossilized in the desolate stone, but the vast dark voids are chipped away. This illustrates suppressed pieces of memory, too sad to come to the surface. The words on the torn pieces of paper in Memoirs series are very in descript and taken from an index of a book. They are burnt and some are covered with resin. This conveys that some memories are arbitrary and random.

The art works of Juneer Kibria are a combination of materials and ideology combined to make
a powerful body of paintings. The expression of all these works is a resonance of the fragility
of memory.

Marianna Bracht