PhD defense | Danial Shah
Becoming, Belonging and Vanishing: an (autobiographical) exploration of photo studios in Balochistan, Pakistan
by Danial Shah
Supervisors: Paolo Favero (University of Antwerp), Ruth Loos (Sint Lucas Antwerpen, KdG)
ABSTRACT
How do we perform identity and desire in front of a camera? What happens before, during, and after a photograph is taken?
Danial Shah (born 1989, Pakistan) presents his PhD in artistic research on the photo studios of his hometown Quetta in Pakistan. Shah grew up fascinated by these studios, known for their hand-painted backdrops and physical props. These are spaces of transformation—where performance, identity, and aspiration meet. Over time, digital technology has reshaped these studios. Photoshop and digital collage have introduced new possibilities for portraiture. Yet portraits continue to express a wide range of desires—from challenging ruling ideologies to declaring love or recovering from heartbreak.
In parallel with this transformation, Shah’s own practice has shifted from analogue to digital, working as a documentarian, photojournalist, and filmmaker. While studios confine, reproduce and challenge society within their walls, Shah’s work engages with the world beyond those boundaries. His research explores the intersection of these two approaches—studio and documentary photography.
Photo studios in Quetta are rapidly disappearing due to technological change. With them, unique rituals, aesthetics, and forms of social interaction are also vanishing—making Shah’s research especially timely. Since 2013, and throughout his ongoing PhD research (2021–2025), he has asked: “What is real in photography? How are desires projected in a single image?” He also reflects on his own practice, asking: “What shapes my photographic gaze? Can I share the beauty of my native country without exoticizing it?”. His multimodal artistic work explores the nature of photography from a transnational perspective.
(Photo by Muhammad Sakhi)
SCHEDULE
12:15 - 14:00 Screening of film Make it Look Real, Introduction by Christopher Pinney
14:15 - 16:15 Presentation and defence
16:30 Reception