About me
Zantiana Iqbal is a visual and performance artist born on 27th January 2001 . She graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Art from the Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture in 2025. Her practice is multidisciplinary, moving fluidly between performance art, mural painting, painting, and collaborative projects, with a growing focus on sculptural work.
She has worked on commissioned and collaborative projects for Spotify Pakistan, and has undertaken freelance collaborations with fashion designers, where she created Mughal miniature–inspired drawings on tracing paper that were later translated into embroidered garments by skilled artisans. This process-based practice reflects her interest in the movement of imagery across mediums, and in the dialogue between contemporary art and traditional craft.
Iqbal has presented performance works at a range of cultural and institutional platforms, including the Nigaah Art Awards 2024 and the Alami Urdu Conference in 2024 and 2025, where her work engaged live audiences through embodied narratives and site-responsive performance art. Iqbal was featured as a performance artist at the Karachi Biennale’s curtain raiser in 2026. Her performances often explore themes of surrealism and spectatorship. Alongside her performance practice, she has exhibited her paintings in multiple exhibitions at ArtChowk, where her work has been shown in both group and independent contexts. In 2025, she expanded her practice to include sculptural work as part of her undergraduate thesis at IVS, marking a significant shift toward three-dimensional forms and installation-based inquiry. Through this evolving practice, Iqbal continues to investigate the relationship between the body, surrealism, and the social structures that shape artistic expression.
"Over the years, I have developed a reputation for questioning the status quo. Innovation is in my blood. While I do celebrate the classic function of buildings and spaces, I’m not afraid to use materials that would otherwise go unused in spaces that would otherwise go unseen. So, if you want to work together and see more of that, you know where to find me."
Education
BA in Architecture & Design
2006-2010
University of Woodbury
MA in Architecture
2010-2012
University of Chicago
Employment
Over the last few years, I’ve built my own architecture studio up. From just one person to a team of 12 now, Arnold Davidson Architecture stands for balance, integrity, and quality. We never compromise on two things: durability and comfort. Working with high-quality materials helps us achieve both. Spaces are meant for people, and not vice-versa – that’s our guiding principle whatever project we work on.
LCArchitects is one of the most innovative officers in New York and I was ecstatic to be part of it. It has shaped my spatial planning career as I got to work with not only industrial spaces, but also public ones. Figuring out the flows of people, while challenging at first, is now one of my absolute strongpoints. At LCArchitects, I worked on the TXK’s new neighborhood planning and Ohio Wood Company’s headquarters.
In my role at the highly progressive UNTStudio in Shanghai, I had the best chance to learn about the architectural principles that my colleagues in China used. This has influenced my work greatly. I now strive to strike the right balance between form and function even harder. Projects I worked on included the Shanghai Great Theater and the D.O. Architects new office building in the city center.
Design architect
2012-2014
UNTStudio, Shanghai, China
2014-2018
LCArchitects, New York, USA
Senior Industrial Architect
Head of Architecture
2018-2020
Arnold Davidson Architecture, New York, USA
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What clients say about me
Arnold is relentless in his approach. Once he has a plan, he will work at it until exact precision is achieved. Form his blueprints, to the renders and then the actual results – the consistency he and his team is able to achieve is just remarkable.
- Adjaye Associates
It has been a delight working with Arnold and his studio team on our latest residential complex build. From start to finish, he was professional and made sure that the final result is of the highest quality. Our unreserved recommendation goes out to Arnold.