r e v e r b r a t i n g
s o u n d s . . .
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. . . e c h o
t h r o u g h
t h e
d e s e r t
 Sandstorm Measuring the unmeasurable, the waylaid caravan drifts its way through unfolding sands. This shimmering night, my flickering lantern  - a timeless Desert Song. For the rains to come the sands thirst a long, long time, for the rains to come the desert song echoes endlessly, for the rains to come one more whisper in this silent night. Ancient hymns reverberating, shadows
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of pigeons fluttering in circles over the sacred lake, the water reflects countless sins, absorbs the pain, desires, anguish, on the pure white temples flags swing gently in the breeze, a mendicant traverses the long stretch of the submerged dunes completing one journey and beginning another. by Satish Gupta
Satish Gupta is a versatile artist, writer and poet. He has read at international poetry festivals and his poetry has been translated and published in Spanish and Catalan.
Curators: Noorjehan Bilgrami + Muhammad Zeeshan Editor: Tehmina Ahmed Design and Layout: Sara Suleman Cover: Detail, from Mussarat Mirza’s “Dar-e-Tooba”, 2011, Oil on Canvas, 22” x 28” Printed and Published by: TOPICAL Lahore 2014, info @topicalprinters.com Copyright @ 2014 KOEL GALLERY All rights reserved under international copyright conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording or any other information storage or retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publisher.
F-42/2, Block 4, Clifton, Karachi, Pakistan 0092(21) 35831292, 35364013 www..koel.com.pk | gallerykoel@gmail.com
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A R T I S T S
F R O M
S I N D H
Curatorial Note
Noorjehan Bilgrami & Muhammad Zeeshan Scintillating gold specks sparkle in the burning sand, each grain… separate, yet together they move rhythmically as the wind sweeps the powdered sand into sculpted dunes that dynamically shift, encircling the desert’s succulent plants. Time ceases not...legends, myths, stories, fables…saints and seers…king, prince, priest king… history rich in culture, embedded in the layers. The riverbed that was once rich alluvial soil is now eviscerated with deep encrusted parched cracks. The fragrance from the rain-drenched soil intensifies the deep, dusky colours of nature… The reverberating sounds echo through the desert... The exhibition stems from the idea of documenting a connection between artists working within and outside Sindh. The profiled artists belong to the same tradition, culture and soil. They have shared an environment and somewhere the stimulus for creativity commenced, where one person decided to follow the unconventional…to break through barriers and become an artist. That one person ceased to exist as a layman but became an inspiration for another to follow, and another… and thereby through a trickling effect, we have such a rich diversity of artists from Sindh today. They have specialized in traditional, modern, contemporary and neo-contemporary art forms. There are now the masters, the mid-career artists and the emerging artists, to inspire others who aspire to tread this path.
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The exhibition traces the narrative of small communities that face issues and challenges on various counts, but manage to achieve the critical mass that makes a collective impact. It allows viewers to analyze the comprehensive strategies and diverse approaches applied by various artists. They borrow, share, stimulate, and absorb each other’s work, incrementally furthering the culture of art and creating a community and support group by default for the society of Sindh and globally. The project is an endeavour to embrace the ‘Ustad-Shagird’ tradition. The artists showcased in this exhibition come from a tradition of being taught by ustads. These ustads/teachers have their traditional unique way of teaching their student(s) which the student later carries forward. They carry the style, the aesthetics and the ways of the ustad inherent within their style of working/creating. Through this tradition they have achieved a great deal for themselves. This show is an ode to and recognition of those ustads and their way of teaching.
Muhammad Zeeshan is a Visual Artist and adjunct faculty at the Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture. Noorjehan Bilgrami is an artist, educationist and textile designer. Founder of atelier KOEL, and founder member of the Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture, Noorjehan pioneered the revival of handblock printed, handloom and natural dyed fabrics in Pakistan. She has had several solo and group shows of her paintings and authored publications on art and the traditional crafts. Noorjehan was awarded the Japan Foundation Fellowship to pursue research on natural indigo in Japan.
Where the desert blooms by Aasim Akhtar
Let us begin with the sounds of a name – Sindh or Scinde, as it was formerly called – and the power with which the hypnotic cadences of a few syllables manage to convey the promise of mysteries as old as time. The myriad faces of tradition have shaped the mirror in which this child of the desert has always contemplated itself, bewitched by the force of an image that goes back thousands of years. The Thar Desert covers three-fifths of Sindh’s territory. From ancient times until the beginning of the nineteenth century it was the natural route traversed by all the migratory peoples, invading armies and trade caravans bearing silk and spices that penetrated the Indian subcontinent from the northwest. That explains its cultural wealth and variety. Within the vast expanse of this arid landscape, periodically swept by terrible sandstorms, a rich mixture of stratified, overlapping or even rival subcultures – nomads, semi-nomads, farmers, urban dwellers – coexist and interact, woven into the beauty of a gigantic and wonderful tapestry. There are no half tones in the Thar Desert, where everything the eye rests upon either explodes with life or else constitutes the very image of emptiness; where everything that is not endless wastes of sand, or broken limestone and dry, dusty shrubs, is an astounding mixture of breathtaking colours. As if the exuberance of these explosions of colour were conceived as a spiritual antidote against the deprivations imposed by the harshness of the natural environment, in these endless horizons, where barefoot women – who work from dawn to dusk chopping stones with which to repair highways, or walk mile after mile with gallons of water in shiny brass pots balanced on their heads, or carry mountainous loads of fodder for their famished herds – move with infinite grace, wrapped in splendid arrays of bright colours, silhouetted against the monochrome aridity of the landscape. Wonderful displays of colour that continue when the desert recedes, where the first patches of green gradually thicken and become dark forests: 10
bold colours like the high-pitched voices of an ancestral tongue that flows through old pink, blue, white and gold cities that spring up like mirages in the middle of nowhere, of nothing. From the very beginning, man has had to discover a means of constructing a life for himself and his group wherever chance or necessity took him; for this he had to learn how to inhabit the territory in a way that would allow him to survive in it; to find ways of protecting himself, inventing gods and culture as a means of domesticating it – and domesticating himself in the process – in order to become a native of that landscape. He had to refuse chaos by ordering the universe, thereby finding a place in it for himself. His home, the main symbol of what man has constructed, is invariably and everywhere a metaphor of his culture. Man builds houses not only for shelter, but also to define and show himself to others. In this sense, the architecture he produces is the best indicator of how he perceives his world; architecture which remains frozen in time, a visible object after other cultural phenomena have either become extinct or else evolved into other unrecognisable forms. In Sindh, the transition between inhabited and uninhabited areas is sudden and subject to the availability of water. There is a permanent lack of water, and its abundance is associated with joy and wellbeing. By permanently inhabited areas we mean the magnificent cities that were once the fortified capitals and strongholds of the feudal Sindhi rulers. They were scions of various castes, and conflict was their element. The tributes they exacted from their subjects were also a great source of wealth. They amassed enormous fortunes. A large part of these fortunes went to build fabulous fortified cities, with palaces, temples, mausolea, artificial lakes, etc. There are also magnificent dead cities, ancient capitals like Mohenjodaro and Bhambhore, now only inhabited by the ghosts of a glorious past kept alive through oral tradition. There are deserted tombs like fists of stone looming over
craggy cliffs; and the formerly prosperous merchant towns, full of crumbling, abandoned mansions that are literally covered in frescoes. Along the main roads there are small and relatively medium-sized towns and then there are the beautiful little desert villages – clusters of small, almost windowless, mud houses designed to keep out the heat and the cold. If in the Western world the ‘limit of subsistence’ is a concept, in Pakistan it is a tangible reality that may be stretched to unbelievable lengths. On the fringes of the fabled cities stand the dwellings of the nomadic subgroups who are the very image of the lack of almost everything: the colourful patchwork tents of the Rabari goatherds; the camps of the Lohar blacksmiths, who travel from town to town on bullock carts, making a living from their ancient craft. Even more precarious are the shacks made of scraps which the Banjara gypsies use for shelter at night, when not sleeping out in the open, on the outskirts of the towns, where the men make a few coins as snake charmers, and their women – reputedly the most beautiful in the world – as street dancers. It may be rather incongruous to talk of the dramatic encounter between monumentality and extreme poverty in terms of the visual beauty, which this contradiction generates. But that troubling paradox is the very essence of Sindh today, where the eye of the beholder is bewitched by their tension between the forms and all the colours and a thousand fleeting gestures. Sindh is an oasis of extraordinary beauty. Vast tracts of the coastline remain wild and undeveloped, while the highland reaches are still easily uninhabited. Headlands have been battered into shape by ferocious westerlies whose sheer relentlessness has stunted 12
trees, suppressed grasses, and wrecked ships in terrifying numbers. There is a sense of escape, exploration, and solitariness. Winter fog softens the Kirthar peaks while low lying light casts long shadows from ancient trees. Stars shine crisply from the sky’s undisturbed blackness. There is no doubt that this innate beauty has lured, inspired, enrapt, and obsessed artists over the ages. However, the work of Sindh’s contemporary artists does not represent the sublime alone. As the artists in the exhibition have immersed themselves within Sindh, they have stumbled across the complexities underlying the province’s culture. Inevitably the artists have begun to breathe the politics, history and traditions of the province, aspects that have unavoidably found a way into their artwork. Each artist’s career has been established around Sindh’s landscape and their own place within it. Whether they are Sindhi by birth or by choice, the artists have used their art practice to develop and express a strong sense of Sindh as home, and collectively in their works tell an intriguing story of humankind’s relationship to the land.
Aasim Akhtar is an independent curator, critic and visual artist. His articles and essays on art and culture have been widely published, both locally and internationally, and he is the author of two books. His third, on traditions of embroidery in Hazara, is due to be out in 2015. When not travelling and writing, he keeps busy teaching Art Appreciation and Painting at the National College of Arts, Rawalpindi.
The Sindh narrative: a few notes by Amra Ali
The narrative of Sindh provides an opportunity to contextualize the aesthetic and conceptual distances covered by those contemporary artists who have emerged from the particular specificity of that area. However far an artist may have gone, away or beyond the centre of his earliest introduction to artistic expression, what is it that he or she retains within? And can those core lessons in aesthetics be anchors that later reoccur in some form? There may be more substantial research and fieldwork into the craft traditions of Sindh, such as in pottery and earthenware, in embroidery, tile work and weaving for instance. The exploration into the context of contemporary visual art, however, presents us with limited avenues of study. At what point does that which has been internalized over time, and most intuitively, and naturally, be recognized as a link? How is the frame of Sindh different in connection to the land and its inspiration from the Punjab or Balochistan? Many artists have moved to the bigger cities for art school education and some have settled there. Have these places acted as catalysts for transformation of the artist and how then to trace links and commonalities binding the work to the artist’s place of origin? It could be that the most experimental narratives in our midst are inspired and find resonance to the sound of a certain instrument, a sur, a rhythm; or by certain poetry that revives a connection to land. It could be that stories and tales that have been part of the oral traditions, reemerge in some form here, and have been contained in existing narratives. The obvious connections aside, it is those that are felt, and those that are intangible that remain part of the essence. 14
Many of the artists headed for the National College of Arts, Lahore and some chose to stay on. Amjad Talpur, Ahmad Ali Manganhar, Imran Channa, Imran Qureshi, and R. M. Naeem, for example, have settled in Lahore, and made their respective contributions to teaching art, apart from having ‘gone global.’ Global and local relationships bring their own rupture, based on neo-capitalist ideals, and power dynamics. It would be well worth documenting the transformation of their early work, which evolved into diverse narratives; some of which defy categorization on the basis of affiliation to any distinct imagery, or even ideology. To what extent were they absorbed into the ‘system,’ and what have been the stories of subversion to the mainstream? By the same token, have artists from Sindh felt marginalized due to linguistic or cultural barriers, and how has that aspect contributed to the reading and showing of their work. One may also ask what it is that artists from Tando Allahyar, Mirpurkhas, Jamshoro, Hyderabad, Sukkur and other parts retain and carry as inspiration in their current practices. Ahmed Ali Manganhar, while in Lahore for twelve years after his training at the NCA, is quoted to have ‘thought of Sindh often, and listened to the music of Kanwar Bhagat Ram.’ Shamsul Ulema Mirza Qaleech Baig was bestowed the title of Qaiser-e-Hind, and in the early 1900s he introduced comparative literature in Sindh and started the method of criticism of previous work. Manganhar’s larger narrative has evolved around the notion of the colonial empire, with reference to 18th century architecture, and colonial buildings of Lahore; but his recall of Sindh is of the Hyderabad Fort. In the current context, he shows two minimal works on paper, titled, ‘My Brother’s House,’ (2013), done in Tando Allah Yar, which elicit an informal spontaneity, referencing both the personal and the historical. Manganhar’s spaces, perhaps of a different sensibility than the ‘shadowy lanes, half-closed
doors,’ and mud houses of Sukkur based Mussarat Mirza’s canvases, do speak of the kind of communal bonding that emerges from the specificity of a shared social environment, of ideals sought, struggles fought and stories narrated. While the light in Mussarat’s spaces leads the path towards an inner sanctum, there is a sense of collective history in both. This is an unexpected shared space of two very different narratives. Mussarat, of course, has maintained her distance from the more linear aesthetics of experimentation. Meanwhile, histories seem to be written anew in revisiting the popular Lollywood cinema imagery in Manganhar’s larger trajectory; Nisho, Waheed Murad, heroes of ordinary peoples’ dreams have been painted against flat fluorescent backgrounds; subtle clues to the vastness of the flat desert landscape perhaps. To compare the brightness of color in the work to the bright apparel or the rilli, though, would amount to framing the artist within a stereotype. And what of the luminous gold of Mussarat’s canvases? The aridness of the physical landscape can be glimpsed in the photographic/painted work of Abdul Malik Channa, titled, ‘Friends’ (2013). Can this be viewed as an anchor for ongoing negotiations with newer spaces? Abdul Malik Channa, from Shikarpur, works from Jamshoro, and like many artists from Sindh, received early art training from Fatah Halepoto. In Channa, the figurative ‘appears’ to be photographed in a particular setting, whereas it has also been painted. The imbalance and ambiguity between the painted, the painterly and the photographed is a subtext that intervenes in the perceptions of the viewer towards that which is viewed. In many ways, it speaks of a space that is on the outside or removed from where the artist may be. Again, that is a perception. What is real(ity), then, is a relative term; both for the artist, his subject and the viewer. There are other works, such as those of Farooq Mustafa, who lives between Lahore 16
and Japan, that form significant points of negotiation between the local and global. His landscapes of the mind lead us through the architectural spaces of Lahore, into the view outside his window in Tsukuba, and into the commentary that lies between dream and reality in Borges’ ‘Garden of Forking Paths.’ There are examples of the idyllic landscape, of the nature of the woman and urn. They may be clichés, stereotypes that cater to a touristy market. But, again, that may be an aesthetic of artists who reside outside the art mainstream. There seems no need felt here to curb discourses, and placing conceptual narratives with the more literal approaches tends to open areas of discussion. The coherence of visual form is less structured or anchored within a single source of inspiration. But as Sheikh Ayaz says in his poem ‘Things Speak,’ ‘You are trying to make sense of my poetry, Listen In history’s museum, Things speak.’
Amra Ali is a Karachi based art critic and co-Founder of NuktaArt magazine.
Centre and Periphery: A New Approach by Aziz Sohail
In context of the exhibit ‘SINDH, reverberating sounds echo through the desert’ featuring 56 artists from the province (excluding Karachi), diverse in age, medium and location, I would like to present an alternative way in which we can think about art production and representation in Pakistan vis-Ă -vis the centre-periphery dynamics. I would like to examine the idea that Karachi lies at the periphery of Sindh in terms of contemporary art, not only so far as where this exhibit is concerned but in the larger debate of art history within Pakistan. The periphery-centre question continues to dominate art historical debates globally and nationally. In Pakistan, of course this question is posited as Lahore and Karachi usually being the centres of the art world and the rest i.e. cities such as Quetta and Peshawar and interiors of provinces being on the margins and/or the periphery. In some ways this notion is rooted in historical precedents, and current realities. Lahore is still considered the seat of cultural production in Pakistan, both on a governmental and private level. The renowned National College of Arts, (previously the Mayo School of Arts), which was established almost 140 years ago is one of the oldest centres of art education in the subcontinent. In the last two decades it has also become known globally for the neo-miniature movement fostered by its faculty and alumni. In postcolonial Pakistan, Karachi is also eminent due to its large financial wealth and capital, which makes it the largest market and a commercial hub of art collecting. In the last few years, Karachi has also had the phenomenon of numerous new galleries opening up, which directly traces an interest and increase in art-collecting amongst the upper and upper middle classes. For every artist in Pakistan therefore, these two cities continue to dominate in terms of support, education and exposure.
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In postcolonial and postmodern discourses there has been a diffusion of the power of the Centre. In contemporary academic discourse there has been a challenge to hegemony of the North in cultural debates. This ‘authority crisis fragments the Center as totality and decentralizes its axes under the semantic and territorial pressures of the margins that proliferate from it.’ (Postmodern Disalignments and Realignments of Central Periphery. Nelly Richard, Art Journal, Winter 1992) Edward Said’s seminal work ‘Orientalism’ also presents the idea that cultural production and discourse on the ‘other’, as it were, regularly fall into the trap of exotic and simplistic notions of the space usually under discussion. With this challenge, and under the aegis of globalization, we have also seen an international diffusion in the hegemony of the art world. Whereas before the locus of presentation and commerce existed in a few capitals such as London or New York and annual events such as Venice Biennale and Art Basel, today even this reality has fragmented. In the past two decades there has been a growth in new centres of production, prominently spaces such as the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, China, and Brazil come to mind, and there is a slew of lauded international art events in previously tertiary centers such as Dakar, Senegal and Dhaka, Bangladesh. Within this contemporary reality, a new fresh way of thinking and a new contextualized discourse is needed around the production, exhibition and understanding of Pakistani art. For many urbane Karachiites, ‘Sindh’ continues to be classified as the ‘other’ and the ‘interior’; it is exotic, backwards and feudal. In some ways this modern reality is rooted in 1947 dynamics and the de-linking of the Karachi cultural landscape to the larger Sindh cultural dynamic. In addition, even in the art world, discourses around artists from Sindh continue to veer into notions of authenticity, history and rootedness, in a way that those questions might not be addressed at the Karachi-based artist. This exhibit contextualizes
these debates and shatters those stereotypes by presenting a wide range of artists from Sindh, placed in different contexts, generationally and in terms of practice, and allows us to examine each artist based on their work and not their origin. Secondly, following trends in a globalized and contemporary art world, we must look at the current realities of artistic production spatially. In Quetta, for example, there are three universities with Fine Arts Departments. The same reality is present all over the country, where Jamshoro in Sindh is now home to the Centre of Excellence in Art and Design (CEAD) representing a new focus on secondary centres of production within our provinces. This reality also allows spaces such as Abbottabad, located in the erstwhile secondary centre of production, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, to have an art department within Hazara University. Keeping the contemporary context in mind, it can be ascertained that the locus of production and its control has started to shift tremendously within Pakistan and our knowledge of art history and contemporary art must be understood within this new emerging context. Artists from these other spaces have continued to and continue to attend art universities in the largest cities of Karachi and Lahore not only due to the importance of these cities in the Pakistani art discourse, but also to efforts on part of the universities to attract a more diverse class. Increasingly, many of these artists continue to engage with their own hometowns and cities, and inspire a new generation of artists. Many of them return to their home towns and villages, spaces as varied as Turbat, Mirpurkhas and Abbottabad where they engage in art discourses and production, as well as education to train a new generation. In the context of Sindh, for many of these artists, interior Sindh continues to be the centre, in terms of not only aesthetic and reference point, but also as the 20
location of production. In this context then, Karachi can be the periphery vis-Ă -vis a space of production and inspiration. Thirdly, and finally, we are entering a stage where these erstwhile classified marginal centres of art production and discourse are not just emerging spaces but increasingly established. Taking the example of Quetta again, the University of Balochistan Fine Arts Department celebrates its 30th year anniversary this year. Initially started by Akram Dost Baloch, Jamal Shah, Kaleem Khan and Faryal Gauhar, graduates of the National College of Arts, the university has been responsible for graduates that are now involved as teachers and educators as well as artists in Quetta and Balochistan. These individuals take ownership of their identity and their educational background to create new opportunities and discourses around art in Pakistan. In much the same way, many of the artists from interior Sindh in this exhibit continue to educate and mentor a new generation of artists, and themselves have links to their own mentors and teachers, presented alongside each other in this exhibit. This diversity of age and location serves as reminder of the rich diversity of the province, and our inability to capture it within a simplistic framework. In conclusion, it could be tentatively argued that for the 56 artists in this exhibit Karachi could very well be a periphery. Their belonging, inspiration, aesthetic, and journey begins from Sindh, and for many Sindh continues to be a point of reference in their work. This argument then, posited through this exhibit and contextualized in the larger debate around the canon of Pakistani art, could transform our understandings of our own art history and raise new questions about the future of our national visual culture. Aziz Sohail has a BA in Art History from Brandeis University. Currently he is Studio Director for Rashid Rana Studio and an independent curator and critic based between Lahore and Karachi.
Artists of Substance by Nafisa Rizvi
Many decades into the future, art historians will record two phenomena experienced in art in Pakistan at the turn of this century – the emergence of neo-miniature and more inexplicable, an almost sudden upsurge of informed, aesthetically superior production emanating from artists who belong to semi-urban Sindh. The linkages of neo-miniature from Mughal miniature to Zahoor-ul-Akhlaque to Shahzia Sikander has been established but more detailed investigations on the origins of the other phenomenon are still being explored. Most often, the name of Fatah Halepoto appears as the signifier of the ‘movement;’ one which resembles an eruption of disparate notions and styles, directed at the viewer’s sensory, visceral and temporal perceptions, irrefutably cognizant and thoughtful. The question then arises as to how one influencer can be the catalyst of so much diversity and if, at all, the group unanimously identifies Halepoto as holding the position of authority. The fact is that it does not matter whether Halepoto, an artist based in Hyderabad, was actually the facilitator of the movement or whether he created the environment that bred the pathogens of creativity. Senior artists like Ahmed Ali Manganhar, Mohammad Ali Talpur, Ayaz Jokhio, Imran Channa and Mohammad Zeeshan bonded at Halepoto’s informal atelier where participants were inspired to make art, not instructed to do so. From all accounts, Halepoto’s humble residence was a magnet for artists who assembled to read poetry and literature, and the discourse entails the process of ideation. It is a tradition that the artists then continue into their years at art school at NCA, helping them to push boundaries and share psychological physiognomies in their art. Another vital signifier in the development of these artists from Hyderabad, Tando Allahyar, Mirpurkhas, Shikarpur and Sukkur used to be the incidence of the billboard painter, now a defunct profession with the induction of technology and the vinyl skin. 22
Ahmed Ali Manganhar tells us how the art of the billboard artist was inherent to the progression of these artists’ works because it was their first encounter with brush and paint and the awe these painters of kitsch inspired in the artists-to-be, remained with them throughout their early years. A slew of gaping youngsters would watch, as the artists would draw the grid on the huge boards. The painter’s apprentice would then fill in the basic colours imitating the photographic still from the upcoming movie and the senior artist would add the final masterful touches before the board went up – the highlights, the glow of light and the customary raw pinks to enhance the colour of skin pigment. These were formulaic methodologies worked out by the signboard painters to maximize drama especially for distance viewing. It was an act of creation that the young artists never forgot. Many times, these youngsters were exposed to pornographic movies, which punctuated their sensibility and stood them in good stead as material for later use. Mohammad Zeeshan recounts this influence for the overt sexuality of his early paintings, which actually addressed the hypocrisies of middle income society and how startling it was for his family to see him paint such images often to an awed audience after he graduated from NCA. It is to be pondered whether histories of certain geographical boundaries have the means to create artists and whether artists from a singular location are born with innate skill and responsiveness to ideas. It seems implausible and in western art history annals, such productivity is explained by exposure to art – traditional votive art in classical history and museums and galleries in modernism. But in the absence of either, what becomes the point of origin and inspiration? The answer probably lies in the receptivity to other arts like literature and poetry for which the province of Sindh is reputed, not just locally but internationally. Great poets like Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai, Sachal Sarmast and Khalifo Nabi Bux Laghari are read and recited in a myriad institutions and homes in Sindh even today. The poetry issuing from Sindh and Punjab is in fact weighty and sagacious in essence, and
additionally manifests the formative notions of Sufi tradition. Sufi values are distinct from mainstream Muslim or Sunni culture in that they are gentler, kinder, and readily accepting of the arts, as it is considered that homage to art is indicative of divine inspiration and spirituality rather than in contradiction of it. The group of artists from Sindh have all chosen their individual vocabulary and thematic paradigms by which to address concerns that are more universal. Imran Qureshi, the miniaturist who is acclaimed as a leading artist in the roster of internationally influential artists, creates large-scale installations as is apparent in his most famous work of red splatter interspersed with the motif of foliage culled from Mughal miniature. With these motifs in bright red, Qureshi denotes scenes of carnage which have become the norm in Pakistan. Mohammad Ali Talpur uses the line as metaphor and as form and structure. The repetitive linear movements imitating the fine warp or weft of hand-woven cloth creates the gestural motion of natural elements like water and wind. Mohammad Zeeshan, the miniaturist who has set upon a journey to negate the miniature and create a phoenix from its ashes has been experimenting with laser scoring on paper, making familiar scenes from miniature while adding a twist of irony to the subject. Ahmed Ali Manganhar works on a trajectory unlike any other artist of his time. An unabashed formalist, he paints scenes from old Indian and Pakistan movies and portrays actors from a long-gone era. His stills become narratives for a present-day commentary on the values, ethics, and norms of society without judgmental overtones. But the idea of nostalgia is strong in his work and in ethics the past is always truer and purer. In this manner Manganhar’s observations are acerbic while they are wistful. There are two sculptors amidst this group. Fakeero is a sculptor of Hindu iconography who employs his skill as an act of devotion. Abdul Jabbar Gul is the postmodern sculptor 24
who has an eclectic facility with materials like metal, stone and wood. Gul’s figures are Jungian archetypes of the syzygy in search of the self and his metal birds, with all their seeming weightlessness, represent an absence of flight rather than a soaring uplift. The issue of identity is apparent in the works of Imran Channa and Ayaz Jokhio. Jokhio seeks answers to concerns of personal identity and for Channa the collective identity is imperative to investigate and reveal. In one of his most famous pieces, Channa uses a photograph of Mohammad Ali Jinnah posing for the camera with six colleagues. He manipulates this walllength grainy black and white picture to show seven replicas of Jinnah himself in various attire and postures, indicating the diversity of the man and the statesman, but a giant who has been relegated to narrow singularity in the history books. Jokhio’s remarkable project consisted of sending out 99 copies of a self-portrait albeit without hair to friends and other artists around the world, asking them to add hair to the picture. The result was a montage of 99 separate pictures, with Jokhio almost unrecognizable in some and exaggeratedly different in others, denoting the ease with which identities are erased and metamorphosed. While these young artists share traits of contemporaneity and edgy ingenuity, there is a senior group that painted before them; the modernists like Mussarat Mirza and A.R. Nagori both inspirational artists in their own respect. Mirza who comes from Sukkur has lived, worked and taught there after studying fine art from Punjab University. She paints the dry, dusty landscape of the city and imbues it with existential longings and sufferings. Nagori was an intrepid activist and defiantly painted even in the face of draconian and life-threatening laws during many regimes. His heart bled for the anguish of the Palestinians when the horror of the Sabra and Shatila camp massacres came to light and he painted about it fervently. Other artists from Sindh share the limelight for inventiveness and cerebral production like
Munawar Ali Syed, whose sculptures engage with audiences at sensory, rational, visceral and temporal levels of enquiry. The late Ussman Ghauri was yet evolving his true style and discovering himself when his life was cut short by fate. As a group there is no defining thread in medium, material or subjectivity that links the works of the artists. The influences in their work come from their interception of social and cultural frequencies of the day, introspective musings, a passion to create art and articulate their concerns and their early exposure to other art forms. This said, inspiration remains an enigmatic constituent of the artistic process. We may at some time uncover more tangible stimuli for these artists but for now we are taking the time to absorb and enjoy their prodigious output.
Nafisa Rizvi is a writer and independent curator. She founded and edited the first online magazine on contemporary art in Pakistan called ‘ArtNow.’ She has contributed to international publications such as ‘Imprint Australia’ and a monograph on Naiza Khan published by Asia Art Archive. She is editor of the book ‘Rebel Angel,’ a monograph on artist and activist Asim Butt.
(Opposite Page) Detail from Ayaz Jokhio’s work, Mehrabpur to Khairpur, Acrylic on Canvas, 48”x 72” 26
A.R. Nagori “ The crises of Sindh, both urban and rural is the focus of several canvasses… Nagori is unabashedly political. His paintings are like a primeval cry of protest against the injustice he sees around him…” Zohra Yusuf (Herald, January 1992)
The late Prof. A.R. Nagori graduated from the University of Punjab, Lahore. He served as lecturer, professor and Head of Department of Fine Arts in different universities. He was also a member of the BOG of National College of Arts, Lahore, Shaukat Suriya College of Liberal Arts, Hamdard University Karachi, and of Pakistan National Council of the Arts, Ministry of Culture. He was also Education Officer, Pakistan Air Force, member NAHE, University Grants Commission, Islamabad and Advisor, Federal College of Arts, Ministry of Culture. Strong protests against socio-political injustices have been seen in his work, exhibited from 1982 to the present day in many shows. He was posthumously awarded the Pride of Performance award in 2011.
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Gloomy Rider, 1988, Oil on Board, 15” x 10” Courtesy of Naveed Nagori
Abdul Fatah Halepoto “Yes, definitely painting can be used for the reformation of society. I myself have used it as a reformation tool. I satisfy my aesthetic sense as well but I also keep on thinking that how my skill can serve society. Similarly I also keep in view art’s commercial aspect because it’s important. Aesthetic sense is the first preference but your belly also requires food. So, both must go hand in hand. But just to paint for the sake of earning money is exploitation of art.Well, a true artist never leads life on barometers, measurements or calculations.” Excerpt from “A true artist never leads life on barometers and calculations,” by Beenish Abdullah
Abdul Fatah Halepoto was born in Qazi Ahmed, District Nawabshah in 1938. He started his career as an art teacher in 1962 at the Art Centre at Hyderabad. Fatah trained a number of art teachers who cherish their association with their Ustad. He chose water colour as a medium of expression in his painting, which is linked to his personal experience and integrates various aspects of the daily life of the Sindhi people. He was also a designer and creative writer. His writings depict the agony of life faced by the common man. As a painter, he uses colours, shapes, and forms to express his feelings through visual symbols. He had several group and solo shows of his work.
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Still Life, 2013, Pastel on paper, 13.7” x 22”
Abdul Jabbar Gul We all live in two worlds, the physical world that we see with our open eyes and to interact we “speak.” The inner world, we see when our eyes are closed and to interact we keep “quiet.” Once, after visiting my studio someone asked: “What motivates you to work?” I replied, most probably the urge for self expression; as a sensitive being I feel and experience inner and outer world impressions that I share through my work.
Born in 1969 in Mirpurkhas, Jabbar worked as a hoarding painter there. He completed a BFA in Sculpture from the National College of Arts, Lahore in 1996. He received the “National Excellence Award” for sculpture from the Pakistan National Council of Arts and Punjab Artist Association Award. He has exhibited nationally and internationally and has twelve solos and twenty group shows of Sculpture and Painting to his credit. Jabbar taught Sculpture at the Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture, Karachi and is a visiting faculty member there. He was commissioned to do the “COINS MURAL,” a large 18 ft x 24 ft mural for The State Bank of Pakistan; a Metal Sculpture for the Head Office, Faysal Bank Karachi; a huge metal installation for Glaxosmithkline head office, Karachi. In 2002, he was selected for the Fordsburg Residency Program, Johannesburg South Africa and in 2011 participated in the 8th international stone sculpture symposium.
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Game, 2013, Wood and Aluminium, 19”x 27” x 20”
Abdul Malik Channa In this series I enjoyed painting on photographs rather than copying the image on another surface, and left some areas of the photographs untouched. These photos are associated with a memory for me, or an attachment. At first glance, the visual looks like a photograph but when you look closer you find it’s a small painting! This is a surprise for the viewer.
Abdul Malik Channa was born in district Shikarpur, Sindh, in 1977. Initially, he was inspired by his elder brother Abdul Khaliq’s artworks. He then met Fatah Halepoto, who taught him basic drawing skills. He graduated in Fine Arts from the National College of Arts in 2000. Channa then taught painting and drawing at the Visual Studies Department, University of Karachi and the Sadequain Institute of Art for a couple of years. He worked as an illustrator at the Oxford University Press, Karachi and is now a lecturer in the Fine Arts Department at the Centre of Excellence in Arts and Design, Jamshoro. Abdul Malik Channa has exhibited in various group shows and has created art for specific environments for over fifteen years. He participated in an International Residency at Lahore in 2008, organized by VASL Artists’ Collective.
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The friends, 2013, Acrylic on Photograph, 3.5” x 5”
Agha Jandan The image I paint is one of positive hope for society. I use the blackboard in my images because I truly believe that it is the source through which we can inculcate positive thoughts in young minds and build character. This is the reflection of my experience as a teacher.
Agha Jandan was born in 1986 in Khairpur Mirs. In 2008, he graduated in Fine Arts from the Central Institute of Arts and Crafts (CIAC), Karachi. Agha Jandan has taken part in various group shows. He currently works at the BVS Parsi High School as an art teacher.
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Blackboard, 2014, Acrylic on Canvas, 36” x 48”
Ahmed Ali Manganhar Sindh informs my aesthetic in more ways than one. Its literature, poetry, music and the dervishi tradition reflects a philosophy of destruction and creation. I have long guarded this aesthetic within me despite my formal training as an artist. My previous work dealt with the colonial history of Sindh in the portraiture of some of its pivotal figures, it was an exploration at the level of the picture plane of archival photographs - the modernization project of the British. My work is not a sociological or historical concern as much as an aesthetic expression of the private history of change, something forever incomplete, a form of love that has nothing to do with schools of art and work travelling to national and international exhibitions.The drawings included in this show are part of a recent series done in Tando Allahyar of what may be termed disinhabited dreams and landscapes of the mind. Ahmed Ali Manganhar was born in 1974 in Tando Allahyar. In 1997 he graduated from the National College of Arts, Lahore. Ahmed Ali Manganhar lives and works in Lahore. He has had solo shows at the Canvas Gallery, V.M. Gallery, Goethe Institut and Alliance Francaise Lahore; Zahoor-ul-Akhlaque Art Gallery NCA, Rohtas2 and Goethe Institut, Lahore; Rohtas Gallery, Islamabad. Group shows include ‘Drawn from Life,’ by Green Cardamom at the Abbot Hall Gallery and Museum, London, ‘Figurative Pakistan’ at Aicon Gallery, London and shows at the National Gallery Islamabad and Alhamra Art Gallery, Lahore. 38
My brother’s home, 2013, Watercolour on paper, 11” X 15”
Ali Abbas Sindh is the land of spirituality. The pursuit of mysticism has given immortality to many, and Lal Shahbaz Qalandar stands out among these. His annual Urs is a cornucopia of colour and those who visit Sehwan have stories to tell as to how Sain Qalandar inspired them. During my visit to the Urs, I bumped into a young malang and asked him what had made him leave everything behind. He only said ‘Lal ki sada’ (the call of the saint) and moved off. I felt drawn to the mystery that surrounds the whole phenomenon, and decided to pursue the answers in my own work. I have made many paintings of sufi malangs, who seem to be controlled by a strange magic. They are real, but somehow belong to a very unreal world. Ali Abbas Syed was born in 1968 in Hyderabad. He completed the art teachers’ course at the government elementary college of education, Hyderabad in 1987 and graduated in Fine Arts from Sindh University in 1993. Abbas has taken part in many group and solo exhibitions on the national and international levels. He has had shows at the Pakistan Embassy, Abu Dhabi; live performance and exhibition, International Watercolor Society, Izmir, Turkey; Shenzhen international watercolor biennale, China; International Water Media exposition ,Thailand; 3rd International Watercolour biennale, Belgrade, Serbia; SAARC artists’ camp and exhibition, Bangladesh. Abbas is assistant professor, department of Fine Arts, Centre of Excellence in Art & Design, MUET, Jamshoro.
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Lal Ki Sada, 2014, Watercolour, 28” x 40”
Amir Raza People in rural Sindh are still living in the Dark Ages. They are so unlucky that they are still in the relationship of Master and Slave within Wadera Shahi.The image of the age of slavery could be seen in rural Sindh as Wadera Shahi has enforced the rules that were key to keeping people enslaved.The rule of the Wadera is the mother of all problems such as poverty, illiteracy, unemployment and the reason why development is held back.
Amir Raza was born in 1976 in Mirpurkhas. In 2000, he graduated from the National College of Arts, Lahore. Amir has participated in numerous group shows, including the Koel Art Gallery, Canvas Art Gallery and Chawkandi Art, Karachi; Ejaz Gallery and Alhamra Art Gallery, Lahore and the National Exhibition, Islamabad. He had a solo show at the AfricanFeeling Gallery, and a Two-man show at the Full Circle Art Gallery, Karachi.
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Slaves, 2014, Gouache and Wasli, 28” x 22”
Amjad Talpur Playing with ordinary objects gave me another view of the picture.These ordinary objects are meaningful. They are a necessity for human beings, and reflect the current situation of my country. It is crisis-ridden, there are greater numbers of people with limited resources, leading to sociological and psychological problems in society. My work deals with the formal issues of making visuals. I enjoy the process of the work, randomness, playfulness and humour in my practice. This helps me to comment on the current situation of society.
Amjad Ali Talpur was born in 1979 in Hyderabad, Sindh. In 2005, he graduated from the National College of Arts Lahore. Talpur has taken part in solo and group shows all around the globe, including Canvas Gallery, Karachi; Christies Auction, South Asian Modern and Contemporary Art, South Kensington, London and New York; Christies Auction, Asian Contemporary Art, Hong Kong; Aicon Gallery, New York and London; Unicorn Gallery, Dubai; Chawkandi Art, Karachi and the V.M. Gallery Karachi. Amjad Ali Talpur currently teaches at the Centre of Excellence in Arts and Design, Jamshoro.
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Untitled, 2013, Wood and Paper, 4.10 “ x 5” x 3.5”
Aqeel Solangi
For me, the yellow Gainda (Marigold) represents the blazing sun. In this particular work, converting it into a dark shade is a comment on the present situation of Sindh. The sun must have witnessed its full glory during the reign of the Sammas and Arghuns but it is now passing through a Dark Age, better described by the legendary Sindhi poet Sheikh Ayaz:
Lahriya pattern in the work represents the river Indus (Sindhu), running dark, as if it is witnessing turmoil from its starting point to the end in Karachi. Sindhu is sacred like Ganga to the poet Narayan Shyam, so is it to me. Having an agrarian background, my ancestors depended entirely on Sindhu. It’s like a lifeline.
Aqeel Solangi was born in Ranipur, Sindh in 1981. He worked initially as a sign and cinema-board painter at Mehboob Painters, Khairpur Mirs. Solangi took extensive art courses at renowned artist Mussarat Mirza’s studio in Sukkur. He completed his BFA with honours in 2003 and MA (Hons.) in Visual Art in 2005, at the National College of Arts, Lahore. He was the recipient of NCA/ Charles Wallace Pakistan Trust Art Bursary for the Prince’s School of Traditional Arts, London in 2006. He is Assistant Professor, Department of Fine Arts, National College of Arts, Rawalpindi. Akeel Solangi has participated in many exhibitions across the country and abroad. Solangi received the Young Talent Award by the Pakistan National Council of the Arts in 2006. He was part of the 2013 Pakistani Artists’ workshop in China. Aqeel Solangi lives and works in Rawalpindi where he also conducts drawing and painting classes at Solangi’s Studio. 46
Untitled, 2013, Acrylic, graphite & marble powder on board, 24’’ x 24’’
Arif Hussain Khokar My work deals with drawing the line, with an approach reminiscent of the sketchbook, to isolate spaces within and without. Layers of drawing accumulate with tiny negative spaces. The line makes you see the drawing, it could be an object or figure, everything has its own form and shape, the smudged drawings merge into colour to blur the line between drawing and painting.
Born in 1985 in Larkana, Khokar graduated from the National College of Arts, Lahore in 2007. His solo and group shows include ‘Between the lines,’ Chawkandi Art; ‘Line makes you see the drawing,’ Nomad Art Gallery, Islamabad; ‘Containing Heights,’ V.M. Art Gallery, Karachi; ‘Cascading lines,’ Rohtas2 Lahore; ‘Within without,’ Koel Gallery, Karachi; ‘Fatah jay aassay paassey,’ Green Cardamom at Hyderabad Museum & V.M. Art Gallery, Karachi. He was awarded Best Young Artist thrice, by the Alhamra Arts Council Lahore. Khokhar currently teaches at the Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture, Karachi.
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Within the Space, 2013, Oil Pastels on binding paper, 60� x 102�
Ayaz Jokhio
It has always been very difficult, for me, to put in words what I do; because I am not an intellectual. To me, intuition is more essential for an artist than intellectualism. Critics are the biggest example of what intellectualism is.They always have a theory of what an artist should be. And I am not interested in pretending to be anything: political, literary, spiritual or intellectual while I am an artist. I’ve always tried to be a very clear and precise artist, trying to reach the viewer directly without having to go through the critics or art experts. That is why my imagery has always been representational and realistic. Art making, to me, is like carpentry. It is hard work. It requires ten percent of inspiration and ninety percent perspiration. My ambition as an artist, if there is an ambition, is to work with all the things that I see, that I touch, that I know, that I love, or that I hate. I try not to have a signature style. I like everything that has no style; like dictionaries, photographs and nature. Style, I believe, is arrogance. Ayaz Jokhio was born in Mehrabpur, Sindh in1978. He graduated from the National College of Arts, Lahore with a BFA in Painting, with Distinction in 2001. Solo exhibitions in Pakistan include shows at Canvas Gallery, Karachi; Grey Noise Art Gallery and Rohtas2, Lahore. An exhibition titled ‘ A Poet’s Country: His Eyes’ was organized by Green Cardamom in London; ’99 SelfPortraits 2005’ at the Arcus Studio, Moriya Japan and ‘Titled’ at the Academie Schloss Solitude, Stuttgart, Germany. His work has been included in numerous group shows national and international; Jokhio has exhibited in Switzerland, India, Australia, Hong Kong and Dubai.
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Mehrabpur to Khairpur, Acrylic on Canvas, 48”x 72”
Fakeera Fakeero I have lived in Tando Allahyar, Sindh, all of my life. As a child, I followed my elders and learnt the tradition of making clay, fiber-glass, sculptures for the temple. I have not received much formal schooling or training in art but I perfected doing large figures. Later, I came to Lahore to meet other artists and helped conceptual artists like Rashid Rana, Sophie Ernst and Hamra Abbas in executing their ideas. This also changed my way of working and I started showing my own work in group shows in galleries in Karachi. I sometimes visit my students in their villages, especially one student in Bachal Sandh. These drawings were inspired by my last visit there, a small village where the people were missing and seemed to have been swallowed up by the powerful eye of the media, the satellite dish that they watched all day, escaping from their lives and abandoning their world. Fakeera Fakeero was born in Tando Allahyar, Sindh in 1990. He started out helping his father, the late Kheemchand, a sculptor who helped him formulate his early concepts about art. In 1992 he met Fatah Halepoto from whom he learnt more about Fine Art and then Mohammad Ali Talpur, Nizam Dahiri and so many others. He has made more than 250 statues, both devotional and non-religious. Fakeera Fakeero has taken part in various group shows, commissions for Sophie Ernst, Rashid Rana and Hamra Abbas. His work has been shown at the Canvas Gallery, Karachi, Sindh Museum and the V.M. Art Gallery, Karachi. 52
Untitled, 2013, Black ink pointer pen on paper, 21.5� x 28�
Farhat Ali Burgari A factory-made material selected for its brilliant linear composition and vivid optical presence, presented in a hand-painted medium that shows no signs of human craft at a distance. Alternately, read as a two-dimensional image that we will recognize in spite of its unusual presentation as an exemplar of human self-expression, it talks about the age of mechanical reproduction and human existence in this age; how the identity of humans is informed by objects of use, the deceptive approach by the artist in the making of this piece reveals and unfolds the hidden and beneath the surface issues worth looking at, as if the artist is seeking uncover hidden expression by disclosing this piece of fabric. Technical re-processing by the artist brings back the factory-made to the hand-made. Farhat Ali was born in 1988, in Badin. He is a 4th Year Painting student at the National College of Arts, Lahore. Farhat Ali has taken part in four group shows, at the Sindh Museum Hyderabad, 2009; News from Sindh, Canvas Gallery, Karachi, 2010; ‘Red Hot,’ Alhamra Arts Council, Lahore, 2011; ‘Day After Tomorrow,’ Alhamra Arts Council, Lahore, 2012.
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A fold to be unfolded, 2014, Oil on Canvas, 60” x 60”
Farooq Ali This series is about how an object changes from the impersonal to the personal over a certain time period. I am using the flower as an object in this investigation.
Farooq Ali was born in 199I in Hyderabad. He graduated from the National College of Arts, Lahore in 2014. Farooq has taken part in two group shows; the Degree show at National College of Arts, Lahore, 2014 and the 12th Emerging Talent, V.M. Gallery, Karachi.
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Celebration of love, 2013, Mixed media, 15” x 16”
Farooq Mustafa
A painting’s artificial, two-dimensional surface requires pure belief in spiritual values. It opens a door to the ideal. Nature is not comprehensible. Neither is a good artwork, because it resembles nature. The incomprehensiveness of nature is the reason why all questions and communication start. We do not have any plausible answer to what life is, but we cannot stop thinking and talking about it. A good artwork can only endeavour to reach the answer. My work grows out of these impulses: a desire to manifest in the world the innards of my imagination, a way to live and discover fantasy. I do this by inventing a world in objects and acting out its narratives. My works draws upon my own surroundings, often in a playful manner. By appropriating visually loaded imagery from my surroundings and transforming them into new works that can be experienced spatially and temporally, I create a selfderived environment from images loaded in the memory to construct a new reality parallel to the original. My images are unified as a whole but unclosed, unlimited and so, undefined. This ambiguity of structure requires active perception, which originates from a viewer’s own desire. It is a playful archaeology of the soul, which uncovers the world within me and the one I live in. I play with space and multiple perspectives, creating a visual story that is narrative and vibrant, yet ambiguous.
Farooq Mustafa was born in Hyderabad in 1975. He received his BFA in Visual Arts at the National College of Arts, Lahore before going on to the University of Tsukuba in Japan in 2002 where he completed Post-graduate research studies. Farooq has given many lectures/presentations on Contemporary Art in Pakistan in Japan. Mustafa has taken part in various solo and group shows, at the Canvas Gallery, Karachi; Khaas Gallery, Islamabad; Greatmore Art Studio Gallery, South Africa; Contemporary Art Center, Mito Art Tower, Japan; Toyama Kenminkaikan Exhibition Gallery, Toyama, Japan; Toyama Shinbun Art Gallery, Toyama, Japan. He lives and works between Mito City, Japan and Lahore.
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I fly over the Clouds I, 2013, Mixed Medium on Canvas, Acrylic, Oil, Charcoal, Pencil, 35” x 45”
Firdous Siddiqui Mera taluq Hyderabad Sindh say hay. Sindh ki kadeemi tehzeeb main bohat zamaney dafan hain. Sindh apni roohani karamaat ki wajha say mashoor hay. Sindh main guzernay waley Soofi buzergan key taleemat nain moasherey main achey asrat muratab kiye. In buzergan nain Aman aur Mohabat kay dars diye jo aaj bhi apni tazgee barqarar rakhey huye hain. Issi tanazer main, main nay sehra main kanwal ka phool dekhaya hay. Soofi kanwal key phool key manind khood ko zamaney kay nasheb-o-faraz say bachatey hain, jis tarhah kanwal ka phool khood ko keechar main rehtay huey bachata hay. Phool kay charon taraf main nain dairay banaye hain jo key Zindagi ki alamat hain.
Firdous Siddiqui was born in Hyderabad, Sindh. She completed his B.A. in Fine Arts from Sindh University in 1997 and Masters from Punjab University in 2002. She has participated in a number of group shows at the Mehran Arts Council, Hyderabad, Sindh University, Jamshoro, Gulmoher Art Gallery, Karachi and the Karachi Arts Council.
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Lilies in Desert, 2014, Acrylic, 24” x 24”
G.N. Qazi Sufism has great influence in the region of Sindh. Here, sufis can be found at shrines in different areas, as they perform a variety of rituals in their efforts to communicate with God, although there are differences from one region to another. This I simply tried to communicate in my work.
G.N. Qazi was born in 1975 in Sukkur. He completed his diploma in painting from the Karachi School of Art in 1995. He has exhibited nationally and internationally and has 16 solo shows to his credit. He taught drawing and painting at Gulshan-e-Fatima Higher Secondary School, Karachi and was affiliated with FACTS Institute, Karachi. He has participated in many national and international group exhibitions such as ‘Transcending Borders II India and Bangladesh’; Auction ‘Salle Drouot’ organized by the French Consulate, Karachi; ‘Indus Strokes’ at The Taj Mahal Palace and Tower, Mumbai, India; ‘A Reflection of Pakistan Art’ at Dia 341 West Broadway, New York, USA; Group show ‘Ussman aur Mein’ at Koel Art Gallery, Karachi and Untitled Artists Art Fair, Chelsea Town Hall, London. He currently practices art at his own studio in Karachi.
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The Bell, 2013, Acrylic on Canvas, 36” x 48”
Ghulam Hussain Soomro Going back to his roots in Sindh, Hussain is challenging the notion of high craft by integrating forms of low-craft, such as weaving and brick building, with the miniature style of painting. His aim: to integrate high craft with low craft and represent beauty within stark contrasts of what is considered as high and low. Inspired by children’s sensibilities, Hussain constructs his images like the pattern woven through in paper. His work deals with the idea of folk art and the innocence of expression both combined and blended in a new manner.
Ghulam Hussain was born in 1978 in Hyderabad, Sindh, but now lives and teaches in Lahore. His work has been shown in Canada and the Devi Art Foundation Museum, New Delhi, India. It was selected for the Fifth Beijing International Art Biennale at the National Art Museum, China. Hussain is emerging as a leading name among the new generation of Pakistan’s contemporary artists. He trained in miniature painting, a genre considered unique in the contemporary art world.
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Catwalk, 2013, Digital Print Woven, 8’’ x 21.2’’
Habib Phulpoto Jiyen mon sikhyo (The way I learnt) Here in this world, there are so many things to learn, and to learn them, an academic environment such as formal school, plays a vital role. This body of work deals with primary education. As a child I learnt the Sindhi alphabet on a unique surface (Takhti), in a unique way. There are fifty-two letters in it, these letters are divided into twelve lessons, every lesson consists of a few letters of the alphabet, which are gradually learnt and written on the Takhti. I titled the work in Sindhi, ‘Sabaq Baarhon’ (twelfth lesson) because all lessons are in a figure of twelve parts. I simply made twelve Takhtis from Wasli (Four layered sheet) and drew the alphabet, lesson by lesson there.
Habib Phulpoto was born in 1988 at Nasirabad, Sindh. He graduated from the Centre of Excellence in Arts and Design, Jamshoro, in 2010. He participated in the VASL Taaza Tareen residency in 2011. Phulpoto has taken part in various group shows at galleries all around Pakistan: ArtChowk Art Gallery Karachi; the IVS Gallery, Karachi; Karachi Art Council; V.M. Art Gallery, Karachi; Alhamra Art Council Lahore; Rohtas2, Lahore and Chawkandi Art, Karachi. Phulpoto currently teaches at the Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture, Karachi.
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Sabaq Barhon (Twelfth lesson), a panel, 2013, Pencil on paper (4 layered sheet), Each part (Takhti) of 11.5”x 6’’
Hidayat Mirani My work highlights the issues and problems of wildlife, which enhances the beauty and aesthetic appeal of a country. Birds are the farmer’s best friends because they eat all the harmful insects that destroy and spoil the crop. Birds significantly beautify the surroundings and, in fact, they make the image of life more pleasant. These beautiful creatures are mistreated in our society. People either hunt them or put them into cages for the sake of their own entertainment. I strive to reflect these issues through my paintings.
Hidayat Mirani was born in 1987 in Pannu Akil, Sukkur. He graduated from the Centre of Excellence in Arts and Design, Jamshoro, in 2012. He participated in a group show in the IVS Gallery, Karachi, and a two-person show, titled ’Trapped’ at the Full Circle Gallery, Karachi.
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Untitled, 2013, Pencil on paper, 28.5” x 20.5”
Imran Channa Through photography, my drawings explore historical perspectives, questioning the authenticity of history that is often manipulated and constructed. Photography can be viewed as presenting a perfect picture of the past. It can also be the bearer of great untruths, propaganda. Referencing archives, the works explores photographic histories and memories. A transformative process occurs where the image is drawn with graphite onto paper, erased then redrawn several times until the image become visible and invisible at the same time. Compressing time and motion and blurring realities, the images evoke a feeling of history vanishing and re-emerging. It provokes uncertainty and throws constructed histories into doubt, challenging the viewer to think about alternative realities.
Imran Channa was born in Shikarpur, Sindh. He earned a BFA with a major as painting in 2004 and MA (Hons) in Visual Arts in 2008 from the National College of Arts, Lahore, and currently teaches there. Exhibitions include a solo project at Art Basel Hong Kong (2013); Canvas Gallery, Karachi (2012); XVA Gallery, Dubai (2011); TM project gallery, Geneva (2010); Mohatta Palace, Karachi (2010); Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Algeria (2011); The Havelian Express, Hong Kong (2010) and VM Gallery, Karachi (2010). Channa attended the Gasworks residency in London, won the “Award of Excellence� of the Punjab Artists Association and was a finalist for the Sovereign Asian Art prize, Hong Kong, 2010. 70
Memories, series, 2014, graphite on paper, 29� x 43�
Imran Qureshi
“I have always been interested in my surroundings in the social political context. It’s always been there.With time the nature of the issues has changed. I think it’s inherently within me though. When I was a child, the first thing I did every morning before school when I got out of bed was read the newspaper, and I still read the current affairs every day. Things were going on like Russian interference in Afghanistan, and the Geneva conference. As a 10 year old I did not have a full understanding of the events, but I had my own perception of things. Speaking about my work, that’s why there is a lot of violence present. But these issues are not only present in Pakistan; they are everywhere. My art varies from very personal narratives to world politics.” (Interview by Lucy Rees for ‘Flash Art’ 288 January – February 2013)
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Born in 1972, in Hyderabad, Sindh, Imran Qureshi lives and works in Lahore. He graduated from the National College of Arts, Lahore, in 1993, where he teaches Miniature Painting as Assistant Professor. Imran Qureshi has become one of the leading figures in developing the ‘Contemporary Miniature’ aesthetics. Recent exhibitions include ‘All our Relations,’ 18th Biennale of Sydney, 2012 ; ‘Painting Show,’ Eastside Projects, Birmingham, UK 2011; ‘Signature Art Prize Finalists Exhibition,’ Singapore Art Museum, 2011; ‘Old Intersections make it New, 3rd Thessaloniki Biennale of Contemporary Art, Greece, 2011; ‘Plot of Biennale,’ Sharjah Biennale U.A.E., 2011; He has had shows at Macro - Museo d’Arte Contemporanea Roma 2013, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York 2013, Salsali Private Museum Dubai 2013, Imran Qureshi is Deutsche Bank’s ‘Artist of The Year,’ 2013. Pao Galleries, Hong Kong Art Center, Hong Kong 2014. Imran is represented by Corvi – Morva, London and Gandhara Art, Hong Kong.
Easy Cutting, 2005, Mixed Media on Wasli, 11” x 14” Courtesy of Aasim Akhtar
Imran Soomro In this Digital era, technology has occupied every space and almost every aspect of life. People visually and verbally associate digital imaging with different options and signs in society. Being an artist, I have used digital imaging and photomontage to express the works of the Old Masters in the language of the 21st century, connecting yesterday with today to usher in times to come. This technique of Digital imaging and Photomontage suitable to express my feelings about the continuum of history in the modern world we live in. Painting is a historical medium whereas Digital imaging is contemporary, but they are interconnected, so I have tried to express the vast concept hidden behind historical/ traditional paintings in the new language of visual art. Imran Soomro was born in Mehrabpur, Sindh in 1985. He graduated from the Centre of Excellence in Arts and Design, Jamshoro, with a BFA in painting, with distinction and Silver Medal. He has exhibited in a number of national and international galleries including the Full Circle Gallery, Majmua Art Gallery, IVSAA Gallery and V.M. Gallery in Karachi; Alhamra Arts Council, Lahore, and Zafar Kazmi Gallery, Sindh Museum, Hyderabad; South Asia Bazar, New Delhi, India and Fort Collins Gallery, Colorado, USA. He has worked as assistant in Ayaz Jokhio’s studio in Lahore, art project director and teacher in the Roots Millenium School, Islamabad, and cartoonist for Saheeti Awaz. He is now a drawing instructor at the Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture, Karachi. 74
Untitled, 2013, Photo Collage on wasli, 2”x 3”
Iqbal Khokhar A painting is not just a portrayal of things but the profound expression of the artist’s imaginative and creative approach, and so are my paintings! I have endeavored to paint with simple and basic colours, whether in acrylics or pastels. Figures, landscape and natural beauty are the subjects of my paintings, the figures are vivid manifestations of woes and the bitter realities of life. The colour schemes displayed actually reflect different moods; landscapes portray a natural ambience. For both figures and nature, I have tried to propound an idea of the brightened existence of hope, though the darkness of miseries and brutal realities of life are also present. I have tried to exhibit both sides of life and reflect on the way life is, and the way it should be.
Iqbal Ahmad Khokhar was born in 1973 to a family of jewellers. He did his BFA from the University of Jamshoro, Hyderabad in 1995 and went on to complete his MA in Fine Arts from the Department of Fine Arts, University of the Punjab, in 1998. He joined Chand Bagh School in 1999 and established its Fine Arts department and joined the College of Art and Design in 2013. Khokhar had his first group exhibition at the Coopera Art Gallery, Lahore, in 1999. Since 1977, he has participated regularly in the exhibitions of the Artists’ Association of Punjab. Iqbal had a solo show at the Nairang Art Gallery, Lahore and an eight-man show at the Ejaz Art Gallery, Lahore. 76
Recreation at Anarkali, 2013, Soft Pastel, 24” x 20”
Irfan Gul Year 2002- she just peeled it off for the first time, and I didn’t know why I felt like naked. We are two souls under one skin, and maybe she discovered that way before me; whereas I was still scared of digging up those grey times which I had buried years ago beneath my very mud. She gave me strength to come to terms with my Moen-Jo-Daro and we found our fossils in each other. Here we are – the excavators, collecting the remains of our innocence to fuel our love – the future.
Irfan Gul was born in Shahdadpur. He did his M.A. (Hons.) in Visual Art in 2011 and graduation in Textile Design in 2003 from the National College of Arts, Lahore. Since 2006 he has served his alma mater as permanent faculty. He got the Charles Wallace Visiting Artist Fellowship, London, in 2013/14 and was selected for the 8th Neerja Modi International Art Camp 2012 in Jaipur, India. He participated in the VASL residency, Karachi, and received the Chughtai Award, Principal’s Honors Award, and Merit Scholarships at NCA. Irfan had his first solo show at Art Chowk Gallery, Karachi and has participated in charity shows and Art Auctions since 2009. Along with numerous group shows in Pakistan, he showed his work at Bastakiya Art Fair and Modula Conceptio Dubai, Affordable Art Fair Singapore, Gallery 27 London and ICAC India. Irfan lives and works in Lahore.
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Excavators : Excavator : Site GW-L (Grey Times Series), 2013, Acrylic and Drawing Pen on Wasli, 27” x 21”
Khuda Bux Abro The so-called honour of the man still lies in his moustache. He endeavours to keep it high and powerful. In my painting titled ‘Demographics,’ I have shown the moustaches floating on the sky of Sindh as if they were vultures. I have painted the sky red to show the sheer amount of blood that is spilled, and heads of women piled up on the dharti of Sindh. In the painting titled “And the Music Died,” I have used the female body to symbolize the ‘Tanbura,’ a musical instrument, which is used to sing the poetry of Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai, the poet of the women of Sindh. The tanbura, in the painting, is broken as if a woman’s head had been cut off from her body.
The works of Khuda Bux Abro reflects an earnest passion for social issues. Born in Hyderabad in 1957, he has explored every form of the visual arts. A prolific artist, photographer, illustrator, graphic designer, calligrapher, cartoonist, and blogger, Abro held several exhibitions even before he joined the National College of Arts in Lahore. An activist to the core, his work deals with social themes and issues ranging from human rights to dictatorial regimes. His intent is to get the message out, with little interest in commercial success. His sensitivity to the plight of women, and his desire for regional peace are all expressed strongly in his work. His eye for vibrant colours is as apparent in his photographs as in his paintings. He works with the daily Dawn as an illustrator.
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Demographics, 36” x 48”, Oil on Canvas, 1994
Lal Mohammad Pathan He knows what songs the desert people sing after a laboriously long day, working tirelessly under the scorching heat of the sun. He realizes the anguish and worries hidden behind their smiling faces. He observes the harsh reality of their life minutely and weaves them as chequered pattern on his canvas. He has a unique style of painting with dexterous strokes of the palette knife. He manages to explore the pattern of suffering and strife intrinsically woven into the everyday life of his subjects. Yazdiar Hawiiwala, ‘Flaming Colours of the Desert.’ Late Lal Muhammad Pathan was the Director of the Art Gallery and Tharparkar Museum, Mirpurkhas. He did his Art Masters Examination at the Education Department, Sindh. He started work in Karachi, but shifted to Mirpurkhas in 1956, only to fall in love with Tharparkarthe desert that forms the body of his entire work. His mission was to showcase the life of this region to the world, and he pioneered art activity in the region, helping to set up the museum. He participated in group shows at Hyderabad and Lahore, besides Canvas Gallery, Karachi. He was a versatile artist, but preferred oil paint and the palette knife.
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Untitled, 2002, Oil on Canvas, 2’ x 3’ Courtesy of Yazdeyar Haveli Wala
Manisha Jiani My work revolves around the transformation of ideas in art. I started by drawing a line, when I noticed the impression of that line on the following pages. It was interesting that the actual line was not there, but even then I could see it. This made me draw daily life scripts and objects. Exploring further the act of making impressions over a plain surface i.e. paper, I started rubbing pencil on those impressions to make them visible. This reminded me of the tracing technique used in miniature painting practice and made me work specifically with miniature imagery. I have chosen various images from Mughal miniature paintings, which I consider interesting. They were first made with a different intention but these days many artists use this imagery for depiction of their own ideas. This tells us how the meaning of images is frequently transformed. The technique I’ve used is tracing (with carbon paper), considering the importance of process in my work.
Manisha Jiani was born in 1987 in Tharparkar, Sindh. She graduated from the Centre of Excellence in Arts and Design, Jamshoro in 2010. She has taken part in various group shows: in 2012 at the Canvas Gallery and V.M. Art Gallery, Karachi and the Alhamra Arts Council, Lahore; in 2011 the Chawkandi Art Gallery and V.M. Art Gallery, Karachi. Currently she is doing her MA (Hons) in Visual Arts at the National College of Arts, Lahore. 84
Untitled, 2013, Carbon Paper and Ink on Paper, 35” x 26”
Mirza Irshad Baig Mirza Irshad Baig works with the idea of watching other crafstmen work and capturing their actions. His interests mainly lies in their posture and style of working. His subjects share the old age factor and yet their skill deals with the fineness and delicacy of their craft.
Mirza Irshad Baig was born in Mirpurkhas in 1953. He is a painter and owns a shop by the name of Nayab Art. He is known for his skill in landscape and portraiture with various techniques of painting. He makes banners and posters, but his use of ‘Kajal’ as a painting medium is the distinguishing factor in his work. He has perfected the art to such an extent that he creates a balmy, soft, cotton-like visual effect that is serene and yet graceful. Muhammad Zeeshan was one of the shagirds at his workshop.
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Karigar I, 2014, Oil on Canvas, 37” x 30”
Mohammad Ali Bhatti I always thought of painting like composing a symphony, enjoying each note and sound of it. I enjoy treating my canvases with a variety of tones, textures, juxtapositions of shapes and colours. I am trained as a figurative painter but on a more creative level, I am equally content with abstract expressionistic paintings; Form and Content in my compositions are seriously contemplated, elements move freely in anonymous space with illusions of appearance and disappearance of elements within the picture plane. My recent paintings are intended to comment upon the socio- political conditions of a confused society, which has lost its identity. Cruel traditions imposed by feudal and traditional politicians continue to support the status quo. My work is a response to these traditions and a call to break these outmoded barriers. Mohammad Ali Bhatti has exhibited his work at the national and international level, with 25 solo shows and several group exhibitions to his credit. After having earned an MFA in Painting from Edinboro University, Pennsylvania, he was awarded a PhD in Art History (Interdisciplinary Arts) at Ohio University, and continued his studio practice. In Pakistan, Dr. Bhatti established the Institute of Art and Design, University of Sindh, Jamshoro and has served as Director and Art Professor for about 30 years. He has painted portraits of distinguished personalities in Pakistan, India, Malaysia, Singapore, Bangkok and the United States of America. He frequently organizes portrait painting workshops, seminars and lectures in the country and abroad. 88
Crises, 2014, Oil and Acrylic on Canvas, 18” x 24”
Mohan Das
I am tremendously proud to be associated with this land and happier because the rickshaw first came to Karachi, Sindh from Italy in 1961. Maybe this is the reason why rickshaw drivers named it “Princess of Italy.” They used to paint it beautifully, peacocks especially were painted in a very delicate way and there were colourful motifs. It was decorated in a traditional style with these verses written on it: ITALY KI SHEHZADI SINDH KI GOUD MEIN In one of my paintings, ‘Mona Lisa in Sindh,’ there are peacocks with beautiful motifs, while in in the background you find Sindh’s traditional Ajrak. In my second painting, ‘My Heroes in Sindh,’ I have painted legends such as Rembrandt, Gustave Courbet, Henri Matisse, Jackson Pollock and Sigmar Polke in Sindhi dress with peacocks and motifs, and the ajrak in the background. They are drawn on an enamel paint lid, used as a surface, because rickshaw painters use these lids as a palette.
Mohan Das was born in Hyderabad, Sindh in 1976. He has worked as a cinema hoarding, truck and rickshaw painter with the painters Ustad Bhola, Ustad Shamshir, Ustad Yameen and the late Ustad Asghar Ali. He was inspired by the work of Ustad Latif, a rickshaw painter based in Karachi. He studied art with Fatah Halepoto in Hyderabad. Mohan Das completed his BFA (Hons) and MA (Hons) in Fine Arts, in the 1st division, in 1999 and 2002, respectively, from the University of Sindh. He has taught at the County Cambridge School and College, Hyderabad and Khana-e-Farhang, Latifabad. At present, he is affiliated with IVS for Diploma classes and workshops. Mohan Das has participated in many exhibitions and shows. In 2008, he received the special Sadequain Award and in 2010 the PNCA award. He runs his own art school, the Fakhta School of Arts. 90
Mona Lisa in Sindh, 2013, Acrylic on Canvas, 26’’ x 43’’
Muhammad Ali Talpur Repetition has a strong connotation in religion and art. It follows the core essence of Eastern art and makes the work more contextualized in its association with Eastern philosophy. Yet the work also connects to Western minimalism. My last body of work,’Alif,’ based on Islamic calligraphy, came out after a long period of practicing traditional calligraphy. In that work the play of uncountable curved and straight lines draws our attention to the deepest visual experience of ‘form is the idea’ in South Asian philosophy.
Muhammad Ali Talpur was born in 1976 in Hyderabad and graduated from the National College of Arts, Lahore in 1988. He has had solo shows at Canvas Art Gallery Karachi; Rohtas2 and Zahoor-ul-Akhlaq Art Gallery, NCA, Lahore. International shows include Green Cardamom, London; Art+Public, Switzerland; X.V.A. Gallery, Dubai and Shanghai Contemporary, China. Group shows include ‘Home Spun’ at Devi Art Foundation, New Delhi; ‘Orient Sans Frontieres’, Espace Louise Vitton, Paris; ‘Fatah jay Aasay Paassay,’ Sindh Museum, Hyderabad and V.M. Art Gallery, Karachi.
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Untitled, 2014, Acrylic on Canvas, 42” x 42”
Muhammad Ali Jarwar My work is about my emotional experiences in the earlier period of my life. I have represented my experiences through diverse, significant lines and motifs. I have used spirals of thorns, barbed wires, ECG lines etc because I feel I’m surrounded by harsh memories, my mother’s demise.
Muhammah Ali Jarwar was born in 1988 in Larkana. In 2012 he graduated from the,Centre of Excellence in Arts and Design Jamshoro. Jarwar has taken part in various group shows including ‘24 Hours for 23 Artists’ at Majmua Gallery Karachi, Houston, New York and Washington DC, USA; ‘Emerging Talent Show’ at V.M. Art Gallery, Karachi; ‘A vision of the Future,’ Exhibition of Young Artists, at Alhamra, Lahore; ‘Modern Portrait,’ International Group Exhibition, Karachi Arts Council; ‘Young Artists’ at Nairang Galleries, Lahore; Installation on Culture Day (Sculpture) at Sindh Museum Hyderabad; Asan-Jo-Larkano,(Shahr-e-Benazir) Mega Festival, Art Council Larkana; Rising Talent at Sindh Museum Hyderabad; Group Exhibition at AR Nagori Gallery, Centre of Excellence in Arts and Design Jamshoro. 94
Hard Feelings, 2014, Pastel Pencil on paper, 12” x 12”
Muhammad Rustam Khan To me, Art is doesn’t have any simple definition.The main purpose I want to achieve is to tell a story with the things that I create, even a simple painting. I want my creations to leave a lasting impression on those who view them. I want them to inspire others.
Muhammad Rustam Khan was born in Mirpurkhas in 1952. He is a self-taught artist working in sculpture and other media. Solo and group shows include: Karachi Sheraton Hotel, 2003; Pakistan American Culture Centre, 2002; Wafi Centre, Dubai,1998; Dubai Festival,1997; Sadequain Art Gallery,1992; Clifton Art Gallery,1991, 1992; Friendship House,1991. He recently completed restoration of panels by Bashir Mirza at the Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture, Karachi. Rustam currently works at his own studio in Karachi.
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Punjab Culture Charkha, 2013, Oil Paint, 30” x 40”
Munawar Ali Syed The work in metal relates to my earlier line drawings (overloaded) on paper. Here, I take the element of line to explore its association in metal. I refer to phases of pain, throw line, the metal becomes the bearer of injury; I refer to the nature of knowledge, its hidden and visible potential of harm. It is also an object, but what is the nature of its physical form?
Munawar Ali Syed hails from the city of Hyderabad and studied at the National College of Arts, Lahore. He currently lives and works in Karachi where he teaches at the Indus Valley School of Arts and Architecture. He is an active member of VASL artists’ collective. Along with several national and international groups shows, Munawar has had five solos. He participated in the ‘Burragorang International Artists’ Workshop,’ Australia, 2003; the VASL Workshop, 2004; the ‘Braziers Artist Workshop,’ and ‘Silbury, Westburry Farm Residency,’ UK, 2005. He also participated in ‘The Rising Tide’ curated by Naiza Khan. He has curated four shows, including ‘Mad in Karachi’ at ArtChowk Gallery, Karachi. He has an interest in the performing arts, and started a theatre group, ‘Behroop.’
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Between the lines, 2012-2013, Metal, 7.9” x 14.18” x 1.6”
Mussarat Mirza For me, painting is an absorbing reality. My early paintings reflected social problems but with the passage of time my paintings have become more solitary. Mud houses, pigeons, kites, shadowy lanes, light, half-closed doors and windows, stairs. The doors and windows are dreams. Coming out of the great beyond, I see a glimmer of light, a ray of hope. I walk through the dark night sure footed leaving my prison vault far behind.
Mussarat Mirza did her Masters in Fine Arts from Punjab University, Lahore. She has had more than two dozen solo shows across Pakistan as well as several group shows. International shows have been held in Canada, Iran, UAE, Korea, UK, Bangladesh, France, China, Japan, India and East Africa. She was awarded the International watercolour shield in Osaka, Japan.
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Dar-e-Tooba, 2011, Oil on Canvas, 28” x 22” Courtesy of Noorjehan Bilgrami
Naveed Akhtar I am an artist because I can express best what I feel in my heart and mind through art. I know that art can be a strong instrument in protecting our environment. In my artworks I try to show how to relate to nature. Today, due to ongoing changes in the environment, we face many problems. Many of our activities damage the natural environment and deny its importance. Human beings focus mainly on fulfilling their needs and their activities can be detrimental, although they are the ones who should strive to preserve nature. There was a beautiful village near the river. The monsoon arrives and the river becomes flooded after the land gets washed away and everything disappears. I explore the life that revolves around the river and feeds from it. A river that gives so much, yet takes away everything. The villagers hope and struggle for new life.
Naveed Akhter grew up in Hyderabad, Sindh. He completed his BA (Fine Arts) degree from Sindh University, Jamshoro in 1996 and MA (Fine Arts) from Punjab University, Lahore in 1999. He now teaches at the Arts and Design department, Sindh University, Jamshoro. He has participated in many group shows including‘ Sath kahaniyan,’ Chawkandi Art, Karachi; ‘United we stand,’ Vogue Art Gallery, Lahore; ‘Mehran Colour,’ Mehran Arts Council, Hyderabad; ‘Dish Dhamaka,’ Amin Gulgee Art Museum, Karachi; He had a two-man show at Coopera Art Gallery, Lahore. 102
River and lost land, 2014, Pigment colour, acrylic on canvas, 1/4 30” x 30”
Naveed Sadiq “I am not a writer not a speaker... I am an image maker.”
Those who listen can hear, And those who can see, will see. Naved Sadiq 2013
Naveed Sadiq was born in Hyderabad, Sindh in 1982. He graduated with a distinction from the National College of Arts, Lahore in Miniature Painting in 2006. Sadiq has had two solo shows, ‘Sepia Voyage’ and ‘Umeed-e-Bahar Rakh’ at Koel Art Gallery in Karachi in 2010 and 2012. He has exhibited in numerous group shows. He taught drawing and miniature painting at the Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture, Karachi 2009-2013. Sadiq is enrolled for his Masters for 2014 at PSTA, London.
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Natteja, 2014, Tea Stain and Gouache on Wasli, 9� Radius.
Nazia Gul Art is a reflection of mind to me. All of my work surrounds my surroundings, it’s open and closed, it’s bright and dull, it’s lit and dark, it’s every bit of my everyday life as well as another parallel world of my mind.
Nazia Gul was born in 1982. She graduated in 2006 from the National College of Arts, Lahore. She has since taken part in exhibitions, at the Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture, Karachi, 2013, Koel Gallery, Karachi 2012, 2011 and 2009; Ejaz Gallery, Lahore, 2010; Omani Society of Fine Arts, Muscat, Oman, 2009; Canvas Gallery, Karachi, 2008; Sadequain Gallery, Karachi, 2008; Alhamra Gallery, Lahore, 2007; Kunj Gallery, Karachi, 2006. She has taught at the Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture, Karachi and at Studio R.M. Lahore.
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Surrogate, 2014, Gouache on Wasli, 9.5” x 12”
Nizakat Depar My work is about exploring the conventional formations of Miniature painting and re-contextualizing the conventional formation of miniature painting to make some unusual compositions. My landscape of the Keekar Tree and its thorny roots depicts my surrounding, creating my own surfaces to depict them.
Nizakat Ali Depar was born in Larkana, Sindh, in1985 and is a Graduate of the National College of Arts, Lahore. He specialized in Miniature painting, passing with distinction and a 1st division in 2009. Nizakat currently lives and work in Lahore.
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Thorn 2, 2013, Gouache on Wasli, 35” x 30”
Nizam Dahiri I have always enjoyed painting the beautiful landscape of my native place, Sindh, from the early days of my learning of art; it is still a meditative act for me because of its peaceful calmness....
Nizam Dahiri was born in Tando Allah Yar. He earned a B.F.A. from the National College of Arts, Lahore in 2001 and an M.A. in Visual Arts in 2014. He teaches at the Centre of Excellence in Art and Design, MUET, Jamshoro, Hyderabad, Sindh.
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Landscape 1, 2013, Water-color, 15” x 20”
Noor Ali Chagani My work revolves around the concept of absence of home. In most of my work, I find myself in search of a small piece of land that I can call mine. Being a child from a broken home, I feel very close to the idea of home, family and personal space. My interest in architecture is also evident in my work. Bricks hold a significant place, for me they represent all my feelings, and act as the building block of my dreams. They act as a transforming unit in the transformation of a miniature painter’s thoughts into sculpture.Their repetitive use refers to the idea of building up a miniature with thousands of tiny brush strokes.
Noor Ali Chagani was born in 1982. In 2008 he graduated from the National College of Arts, Lahore. Chagani has taken part in various national and international group shows. They include the Slick Art Fair, Paris; Stanford University’s Cantor Arts Center, San Antonio Museum of Art, San Antonio, Texas; Corvi-Mora, London; Joye Gallery, Belgium; Al-Riwaq Art Space, Bahrain; Institut du Monde Arabe, Paris; Rijks Academy, Amsterda; Casa Árabe, Madrid; V&A Museum,London; The Devi Art Foundation, Delhi, India; Art Dubai, 2010; Green Cardamom, London; Pacific Asia Museum, California; Thomas Erben Gallery, New York. He was a recipient of the Rijks Academy and Al-Riwaq Art Space residencies. Chagani was short-listed for the Jameel Prize in 2011. He currently works as an independent contemporary artist. 112
Boundaries, 2013, Terracotta bricks, cement and acrylic paint, 5” x 24” x 0.5 “
Qadir Jhatial My work, inspired by the elements in my surroundings, is about a multiple level of aesthetic inquiry. I transform objects/environments into visuals of complex chromatic order. The interplay of space, surfaces, textures and materials, and the sensitive use of domestic and familiar items are sources of personal expression and visual enquiry. My interest in exploring new ideas, media and methods has led me to experience a different visual vocabulary, especially that of flat colour paintings. Using this form of expression inspired me to study the theory of art and other concepts related to our aesthetic experience.
Qadir Jhatial was born in 1986 in Hyderabad and graduated from the National College of Arts, Lahore in 2012. Shows include ‘As We Roll Along From Morning To Night’ at Satrang Art Gallery, Islamabad; ‘2 dimensional’ at Spaces Gallery, Karachi; ‘Memories of the Future (Young Artists’ exhibition) Alhamra, Lahore; ‘Sublime Encounter’ at Rohtas Gallery Islamabad; ‘Laberintour’ at Satrang Art Gallery Islamabad and ‘Emerging Talent,’ V.M. Art Gallery Karachi. Qadir won a distinction in his thesis project at NCA. He works and lives in Lahore.
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Gathering, 2013, Enamel on Canvas, 40” x 60”
R. M. Naeem
My work is divided into two major parts, much like human existence… the body and the soul. These works belong to my series ‘Faith Soul Search’ … a personal journey within; one shaped by a series of external stimuli from different states of mind– religious, cultural, political and at times even nostalgic, embedded childhood memories perhaps. The imagery symbolizes how spirituality is intrinsically ingrained in every child that comes into this world. The iconography of androgynous bald figures and other representational vocabulary points out how all religions impart the message of peace that binds mankind. The other stratum of my work celebrates indigenousness, which is very much a part of my soul; it serves as homage to folk intellectuals. It is a sense of belonging to a metaphysical ideology, a universal need of human beings to perform mystic rituals that connect one individual to another. Born in Mirpurkhas in 1968, R. M. Naeem now lives and works in Lahore. After completing his BFA in 1993 as a distinction student at the National College of Arts Lahore, he held the position of assistant professor at his alma mater. Naeem has had 15 solo shows in Pakistan and abroad and curated various shows of local and international artists. Exhibitions include The Asian Art Biennale, Dhaka, Bangladesh 2004, 2006; The International Artists’ Biennale, Iran, 2006; The Pyeongtack International Art Festival, Lake Museum, Korea 2006, 2007; Art Expo Malaysia 2010; Slick Art Fair Paris, France, 2010; AAF Affordable Art Fair Singapore 2011 and in Melbourne, Australia, 2012. Selected artist for Saatchi online, 100 curators 100 days show, 2012; India Art Fair, Delhi and Sindh Art Fair, Karachi, 2014. Has also shown in India, Oman, Bahrain, Hong Kong, Singapore, Paris, UAE, USA, China, UK, Norway, Sri Lanka and Canada. He has attended many art camps and residencies and conducted art counselling workshops. Since 1994, he has been involved in art education at STUDIO RM, Lahore, initiating the Studio RM (International) Residency program in Lahore in 2008. R.M. Naeem’s work has garnered several scholarships, awards and prizes, including the Provincial award twice and National Award of Excellence.
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Guide, Acrylic on canvas, 18” x 24”
Rehana Mangi
This body of work started as a response to difficult personal circumstances. I had the habit, inherited from my grandmother, of collecting my fallen hair. I used to spend a lot of time drawing these bunches of hair, during my student years at National College of Arts. Simultaneously, I started drawing minute grids on Wasli paper, which became a therapeutic and meditative process for me at the time. Subsequently, drawing upon my childhood experiences of learning the craft of cross-stitch in my village, I started stitching on this Wasli paper with the collected hair. Hair, as long as it is on a person’s head, is beautiful and desirable, but becomes disgusting and unwanted as soon as it falls, it is disposed off in ways that attempt to ward off black magic. I am interested in emotions that the use of this fallen/dead hair evokes when it is re-appropriated into a work of art, and is once again made desirable, precious and sacred. It also refers to desires unattained, the yearning for what had been impossible in the past still lingers. The fallen, disembodied hair echoes such emotions. Rehana Mangi was born in 1986 in Larkana. She graduated from the National College of Arts, Lahore as a miniature painter in 2007. Her solo and group shows include exhibitions at MEWO Kunsthalle, Memmingen, Germany; Green Cardamom at Delhi Art Fair; Aicon Gallery, New York; Alexis Renard Gallery, Paris, France; Gandhara Gallery Tokyo, Japan; Pacific Asia Museum, California; Herbert Art Gallery, UK; Bradford Museums, Galleries and Heritage, UK; Anant Art Gallery, New Delhi, India; Canvas Gallery, Karachi and Rohtas2, Lahore. Her works are part of important private collections across three continents. Rehana currently lives in Lahore and is doing her Masters in Art and Design at the Beaconhouse National University.
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Untitled, 2012, Human hair, Gouache, tea wash and gold leaf on Wasli, 14” x 12”
Rizwan Ali Umrani Loneliness is pretty dominant in my painting, because I felt deep sorrow when my mother left me; that led me to painting, love for my mother is the main source of inspiration. I approach each painting with no expectation or formula. I don’t set out to produce art about any subject; but my paintings reflect Love, Behavior, Moods, Loneliness; none of it was intentional – it developed and evolved over time. I’ve never liked to explain a certain piece of work – if you’ve made a picture and that’s how you wanted it to be – hopefully it can speak for itself and whatever it says to the viewer is the right message because there isn’t a wrong and a right message. Each person takes something a little different from the same picture and I’m happy with that.
Rizwan Umrani was born in Larkana in 1938. An artist from Sindh who has no formal education in art, Umrani says his mother was his main source of inspiration. He states that Truth is his mission and he is obsessed with the concept of propagating it. Umrani started the Mother Art Gallery in Larkana. Recent exhibitions include a group show at Makeda Gallery, Palermo, Italy in 2011.
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The Present, 2009, Acrylic on paper, 17.7” x 23.6”
Safdar Ali Qureshi My work deals with the revival of provincial languages and dialects with traditional miniature as its base. The second aspect of my work deals with experimentation. If we go back in time, we see that Miniature was practiced in the karkhana as an art form and everyone worked together. Today, we work individually and our focus is to change the original format even though we adhere to its traditional skills. Just as customs and traditions are vanishing from our society, the same is true for the Miniature. In contemporary miniature, there is a new dialogue with tradition. In my previous work I took an original miniature image from a book and made a digital print of it. This I had cut in strips and pasted onto the Wasli in a different manner to form a new image. Now I have cut images of famous paintings and painted them on Wasli with the same technique in the traditional way.
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Safdar Ali Qureshi was born in 1980 in Larkana, Sindh. He graduated from the National College of Arts, Lahore in 2005. Safdar has had solos and group shows at Canvas Gallery, Gandhara Art Space and Chawkandi Art Gallery Karachi; Nomad Gallery and Rohtas Gallery , Islamabad; Rohtas2, Croweaters Gallery, and Alhamra Arts Council, Lahore. International shows include ‘Kohinoor Selection’ at Emirates Hills, Dubai, UAE; ‘Indus Strokes’ at Taj Mahal Palace and Towers Mumbai, India; ‘Places Real and Imagined,’ Bait Muzna Gallery, Muscat Oman; ArtparisAbudhabi at Emirates Palace, Abu Dhabi, UAE. He is a visiting faculty member at the Fine Arts Department, Centre of Excellence in Arts and Design, MUET, Jamshoro.
Untitled, 2013, Gauche on Wasli, 5” x 7”
Salman Ahmed A resident of Mirpurkhas, I draw my inspiration from my teacher, the late Lal Mohammad Pathan, who devoted his entire life to portraying the harsh life and poverty of the people of Tharparkar, Sindh. I intend to carry on his tradition through portraits, wherein every wrinkle on the weathered faces of these poor inhabitants of Thar has a story to tell. I hope that people will one day listen to their story.
Salman was born in 1974 in Mirpurkhas, Sindh. He received his primary and secondary education at Mirpurkhas. His love of art led him to the Tharparker District Cultural Association (now renamed The Arts Council of Mirpurkhas), where the late Lal Mohammad Pathan conducted art classes. Salman grasped the art techniques taught with love and kindness by his late teacher. He received his (IDEH) Inspectorate of Drawing/ Art & Craft Education Diploma from the Hyderabad Elementary Government College in the 1st division. In 2013, he passed the ATC (Art Teaching Certificate) Exam. Salman’s first exhibition was held at Sabuha Art Gallery, Karachi, in 2002, and he has participated in several shows since, including ‘ArtFest,’ Sheraton Hotel, Karachi; ‘Sindh Canvas,’ The Arts Council, Karachi, ‘Mehran Colours,’ Mehran Arts Council, Hyderabad; ‘Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Art exhibition,’ Tharparker Art Gallery, Mirpurkhas; 1st Conference on Art and Art Exhibition, Jamshoro; Sadequain Art Gallery, Frere Hall, Karachi. Salman won the 2nd prize at the Sindh Artists Exhibition, at The Arts Council, Karachi, 2013. 124
Faces of Sindh I, 2013, Oil on canvas, 28” x 24”
Scheherezade Junejo
Inspired by various aspects of Dance, Mime and Stage theatre, my work began as an observation of human behaviour through postures, movements and portions of anatomy. Exploring different surfaces and facades such as skin, bone and fabric helped me to understand the various facades we wear, almost as costumes, in our daily lives.With time, my paintings have evolved into highly choreographed visuals denoting the banality and monotony in our lives. Colour theory is very relevant to my work. I prefer to work with two extremes; black and white. When used together the result can denote virginity or purity at times, and clone-like figures at other times, to highlight that we have virtually put a price on ourselves without even realising it. Similarly, echoes of polarity can be seen at times through the symmetry of characters; placement of animate with inanimate objects; through the conversation between figures, giving them a bipolar quality. In my mind, right cannot exist without wrong, and vice versa. Scheherezade Junejo was born in 1986. She graduated from the National College of Arts, Lahore, in 2010. Scheherezade’s group and solo shows include ‘Within & Without,’ Full Circle Gallery, Karachi; ‘Sublime Expression,’ Mussawir Art Gallery, Dubai; ‘Art-A New Approach,’ Ejaz Gallery, Lahore; ‘Art Melbourne, Royal Exhibition Museum, Melbourne; ‘In Praise of Red,’ Royaat Gallery, Lahore; ‘Psychological Space,’ IVS Gallery, Karachi; ‘After All,’ Royaat Gallery, Lahore; ‘Body of Work,’ Drawing Room Gallery, Lahore; ‘The Fashion Show,’ solo show, T2F Gallery, Karachi. She was awarded ‘10 Best Works’ at the Alhamra Arts Council, Lahore, 2011. Scheherezade currently teaches at Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture.
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Tongue-Tied, 2013, Oil on Canvas, 36” x 72”
Shahana Munawar Dil Dharakne Ka Sabab Yaad Aaya Wo Teri Yaad Thi Ab Yaad Aaya Aaj Mushkil Tha Sambhalna Ay Dost Tu Musibat Main Ajab Yaad Aaya Din Guzra Tha Bari Mushkil Se Phir Tera Waada-e-Shab Yaad Aaya Tera Bhula Hua Paimaan-e-Wafa Mar Rahenge Gar Ab Yaad Aaya Phir Loog Nazar Se Guzre Phir Koi Sheher-e-Tarab Yaad Aaya Haal-e-Dil Hum Bhi Sunate Laikin Jab Wo Rukhsat Howa Tab Yaad Aaya Baith Kar Saaya-e-Gul Main ‘Nasir’ Hum Bohat Roye Wo Jab Yaad Aaya -Nasir Kazmi
Shahana was born in Hyderabad and now lives and works in Karachi. She did her B.F.A in printmaking at the National College of Arts, Lahore, in 2003. Shows include‘ Sath kahaniyan,’ Chawkandi Art, Karachi; ‘Ahad karo,’ Koel Gallery, Karachi; ‘Sargoshian,’ Khas Gallery, Islamabad;‘Indus colour’ Mehran Arts Council, Hyderabad; ‘Printmaking,’ V.M. Art Gallery, Karachi; ‘Miniature painting,’ Momart Gallery, Karachi; Brewster project (exhibition) New York, USA. Shahana has taught at the Centre of Excellence in Art and Design, Jamshoro and Central Institute of Arts and Crafts, Karachi.
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Dil Dharakne Ka Sabab Yaad Aaya, 2013, Acrylic on canvas, 36” x 24” & 36”x12” diptych
Shams ud Din I live between two worlds. One being my rural hometown of Shikarpur and the other Lahore, where I am setting my life up. The conflict and difference between these two worlds and how that affects me, suffocates me and alienates me forms the basis of my visual and artistic practice. In my work, a viewer may recognize elements of growth and expansion but strangely juxtaposed with images of blackness and haunting self-portraits with polythene bags, signifying suffocation. The work is a reflection of alienation and struggle, which I face as an individual and which I find is the fate of our nation.
Shams ud Din was born in 1986 in the Mian Sahib district, Shikarpur. He graduated in 2010 from the National College of Arts, Lahore. He had a solo show, ’Within Without’ at the Drawing Room Art Gallery, Lahore and has participated in various group shows including an exhibition of contemporary Pakistani art at the Mica Art Gallery; a private show in the UK, the exhibition ’DXB Unframed’ in Dubai, the ‘Young Blood’ group show at the Canvas Gallery, Karachi and ‘Contemporary Miniature’ at the Arts Council, Lahore. He is a recipient of the Sadequain Award and the Rangoonwala Trust scholarship. Shams ud Din currently teaches at the Naqsh School of Art, Lahore, in the Fine Arts department. 130
Untitled, 2013, Gouache on Wasli, 30” x 20”
Shaukat Ali Khokhar Words begin to reveal multiple meanings and connotations if manipulated in a certain way.When viewing text in public spaces people are conditioned to associate certain fixed ideas with words. But I have used text as a medium to create a whole new visual vocabulary that is a comment on our psyche and political scenario. The viewer is no longer a passive bystander but an active participant in change, commenting on his/her role in the public space. My other words are a comment on the absence of text when transferred from another context and how that absence can be interpreted as a comment on censorship, history, politics, the power and role of text in society when opinions, ideas and thoughts are stifled.
Shaukat was born in 1970 to an agrarian family in a small village, Mithodero, in district Larkana, Sindh. Shaukat had a happy childhood, playing outdoors, and spending time with a large flock of pigeons he kept at home, watching his mother busy in various ethnic crafts. Initially he was inspired by signboard and cinema painters. He graduated from Sindh University, Jamshoro in 1996, and did his MA (Hons) in Visual Arts at the National College of Arts, Lahore, in 2013. He teaches at the Centre of Excellence in Arts and Design (MUET) Jamshoro, as a lecturer in the Fine Arts Department.
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Meditation, 2013, Acrylic on canvas, 32” x 72”
Tahir Ali My work is created by gestures, expressive lines and intuitive colour choices. It is not an observational record, but contains elements of an emotional experience that I feel is there in nature. Forms and rhythm play an active role in my process, and subtle palettes of colour create a moving and restless balance. The act of assembling, selecting and collating found objects and mediums develops the final image. The paintings play with the 2 dimensionality of a canvas. Some explore and enhance the flatness of the surface, while others create an illusion of 3 dimensional depth through multiple layering, imagination and mark making. There are familiar objects and things present in the imagery, accompanied by a feeling that dismisses their recognition. Tahir Ali was born in Hyderabad, Sindh, in 1986. He graduated from the National College of Arts, Lahore, in 2012. Group shows include ‘As we roll along from morning to night, Satrang Art Gallery, Islamabad; ‘Sublime encounters,’ two-person show, Rohtas Gallery, Islamabad; ‘Hide & seek,’ Paint Bucket online gallery, Lahore; ‘Laberintour’ group show, Satrang Art Gallery, Islamabad; ‘Young Pakistani Artists Show’ US Embassy, Islamabad, curated by Imran Qureshi in cooperation with Rohtas Gallery, Islamabad; ‘10th Emerging Talent,’ V.M. Art Gallery, Karachi.He was awarded the Top Ten Young Artists Award at Alhamra Art Gallery, Lahore. Tahir lives and works in Karachi. 134
Untitled, 2013, mixed media on canvas, 54” x 42”
Ussman Ghauri “It is natural human behavior to reserve luxury, comfort and happiness for ourselves before others and society.Yet it is also human to give to others and form tangible bonds that go beyond the self.” Ussman Ghauri Statement, Catalogue, Studio R.M. Residency – 2008.
Born in Sukkur, Ussman Ghauri received his Bachelors of Design from National College of Arts, Lahore, Pakistan (1992) and his Masters of Art (MA) from University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia (2000). He taught Printmaking (1996-2011) at Indus Valley School of Arts and Architecture, Karachi. He had a number of solo shows nationally and also participated in group shows in the USA, UK, Japan, Oman and Mauritius. Ussman Ghauri worked for VASL (the local chapter of triangle Trust Network, UK) in 2004. In addition, he attended the International Artists Workshop, Mauritius 2004. Ussman Ghauri passed away in 2011 in Karachi.
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Untitled, Acrylic on wood, 48” x 36”
Zahid Hussain My recent work portrays the overall attitude of most of our country’s leaders towards the nation, specifically after the death of the founder, Quaid-eAzam Mohammad Ali Jinnah. Most of our leaders strive to serve the country only for their personal wellbeing, and this is our major issue.
Zahid Hussain Soomro was born in Shikarpur, in 1978. He graduated from the National College of Arts, Lahore in 2006. Zahid Hussain has taken part in group shows at Canvas Gallery, Karachi; an International Exhibition at Alhamra Arts Council, Lahore; VASL International Residency, Lahore; VASL Shanaakht International Exhibition, Karachi Arts Council. Zahid currently works on painting projects.
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Message from the Founder of Pakistan, 2013, mixed media on canvas, 22 “ X 16 “
Participating Artists
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A. R. Nagori
Farooq Ali
Abdul Fatah Halepoto
Farooq Mustafa
Abdul Jabbar Gul
Firdous Siddiqui
Abdul Malik Channa
G.N. Qazi
Agha Jandan
Ghulam Hussain Soomro
Ahmed Ali Manganhar
Habib Phulpoto
Ali Abbas
Hidayat Mirani
Amir Raza
Imran Channa
Amjad Talpur
Imran Qureshi
Aqeel Solangi
Imran Soomro
Arif Hussain Khokar
Iqbal Khokhar
Ayaz Jokhio
Irfan Gul
Fakeera Fakeero
Khuda Bux Abro
Farhat Ali Burgari
Lal Muhammad Pathan
Manisha Jiani
Noor Ali Chagani
Mirza Irshad Baig
Qadir Jhatyal
Mohammad Ali Bhatti
R. M. Naeem
Mohan Das
Rehana Mangi
Muhammad Ali Talpur
Rizwan Ali
Muhammad Ali Jarwar
Safdar Ali Qureshi
Muhammad Rustam Khan
Salman Ahmed
Munawar Ali Syed
Scheherazade Junejo
Mussarat Mirza
Shahana Munawar
Naveed Akhtar
Shams ud Din
Naveed Sadiq
Shaukat Ali
Nazia Gul
Tahir Ali
Nizakat Depar
Ussman Ghauri
Nizam Dahiri
Zahid Hussain
Acknowledgements ‘SINDH Sounds reverberating, echo through the desert…Artists of Sindh’ This important compendium of the ‘Artists from Sindh’ would not have come to fruition without the support and enthusiasm of the participating artists. We would like to thank Tehmina Ahmed for her editorial input, Aasim Akhtar, Amra Ali, Aziz Sohail and Nafisa Rizvi for their thought provoking views on the exhibition. Yazdyar Haveliwala, Naveed Nagori, Aasim Akhter, Jabbar Gul, and Noorjehan Bilgrami for generously loaning work from their collection. We are also grateful to Yazdyar Haveliwala for his help in compiling data on some artists. Jamal Asheqain for helping with some of the photographs. We would like to acknowledge Satish Gupta who kindly permitted us to reprint his poem ‘Sandstorm.’ Koel Gallery greatly appreciates Topical’s endeavours for making this catalogue possible, by their complete support in printing and publishing. Curators: Noorjehan Bilgrami and Muhammad Zeeshan
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Topical Text
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