Shumaiya Khan (B.1990) Flesh of the Palm oil and salt on canvas 70 x 59.6cm (27 9/16 x 23 7/16in). Footnotes: Provenance Property from the artist's collection, UK. Flesh of the Palm was originally presented in It's Only Natural, curated by Vittoria Beltrame as part of the 2nd June 2026 Modern & Contemporary South Asian Art Sale. The works that formed part of the collection from Shumaiya Khan, Amrit Singh Sidhu and Divya Balivada drew on Roland Barthes' Mythologies (1957), which proposes that images are never as simple as they seem. The works explored how contemporary practices break down and rethink myths embedded within tradition and cultural memory. If myth, as suggested by Barthes, transforms history into something that appears natural, the works included in the selection resist and rework this perception, by unsettling inherited narratives too often read as fixed - resulting in an understanding of an identity always in shift, layer upon layer. Across painting and drawing, Sandhu, Balivada, and Khan approach the image not as a simple representation, but as re-imagination. Their works do not only depict identity, but they also reveal how it is constructed, through inheritance and experiences, while simultaneously challenging the attempt to stabilise it. In Amrit Singh Sandhu's practice, the image is stretched across the surface. Archival photographs, often understood as truth of memories, are reworked disrupting their authority. Here, the familial image so often mythologised as an anchor of origin becomes speculative. Sandhu exposes the myth of belonging, replacing it with a continuous process of becoming shaped by diasporic movement. Divya Balivada's work engages with another type of myth: the internalised and culturally coded image of the self. Her works often hover between figuration and dissolution, representing abstract bodies and gestural movements that resist legibility. Balivada disrupts coherence, playing with the idea that identity, particularly feminine identity, can be fully seen, known, or categorised. Instead, her paintings operate in ambiguity, where perception is redefined and meaning is altered. This happens on the canvas while reworking memories of natural environments that have shaped not only her years of moving and replanting roots, but from this, her entire persona too. It is not merely of inspiration, it is indeed embedded in her. Shumaiya Khan instead extends this destabilisation into the visceral. Her tactile abstract surfaces draw on animism and mysticism, invoking forms that feel both ancient yet at the same time contemporary. If Barthes examined how modern culture produces myths that hide their own construction, Khan reclaims myth as a generative force. Her compulsive yet meditative gestural work becomes a documentation of endurance, shaped by trauma, displacement, and healing. The body here becomes a vessel to express. Together, these practices reveal myth not as ancient, but as a solid and active structure shaping how we see and understand the world, making it a natural part of our identity. Yet, rather than reinforcing its authority, the works fracture blurring the line between image and meaning, memory and current reality, physical and gestural. About the artist: Shumaiya Khan is a multidisciplinary artist working across painting, sculpture, and installation. Her practice explores instinctual, bodily forms and the relationship between physical and metaphysical realms through layered, tactile works often presented as immersive environments. Informed by myth, mysticism, and animism, her work reflects on feminine identity and contemporary contexts, prioritising emotional resonance over representation. She holds a BA from Goldsmiths and an MFA from City & Guilds of London Art School. She navigates painting as a necessity, an instinctive way of being in this world. Having lived through PTSD, gender biases, displacement, and generational trauma, she finds painting vast and fluid enough to hold the intensity of being human. Recursive and dynamic gestures are bodily accumulations that hover between compulsive and meditative, becoming records of endurance, healing, and reclamation. About the curator: Vittoria Beltrame is a curator, writer, and advisor dedicated to championing artists whose creative vision and talent deserve global recognition. Her practice is guided by a deep fascination with transhistorical themes, which informs her appreciation for diverse art movements and the enduring forms of talent they embody. Through her curatorial work, Beltrame seeks to create lasting dialogues between artists and movements across time. She has curated exhibitions for galleries internationally, including Bonhams, Soho Revue and Wilder among others. Beyond her curatorial practice, Beltrame is an active writer, contributing to curatorial texts and various art publications. In addition, she has lectured at Christie's Education. Beltrame oversees the residency program founded and hosted by Soho Revue, which offers emerging artists complimentary studio space, mentorship, and opportunities to connect with institutions and present their work. Most recently, she founded Carta Magna, a nomadic art platform dedicated exclusively to showcasing works on paper. Beltrame holds an MSc in Art, Law, and Business from Christie's. This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: AR AR Goods subject to Artists Resale Right Additional Premium. For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com For further information about this lot please visit the lot listing