2. Pique peeps into Degree Show of National College of Arts
Amidst the excitement of newly arrived spring
season in Lahore; a vibrant city of arts, literature and contemporary ideas National College of
Arts celebrated its annual extensive DEGREE SHOW. Showcasing the work of graduating artists
from the disciplines of fine arts, architecture, ceramics, musicology, design, film and TV, the
show started on 16th and lasted till 20th February 2015.
The school of painting, miniature and sculpture stimulated the audience with contemporary,
innovative and challenging work. The brilliantly and sensitively executed work of Syed Husain
focused on the events that circumnavigate religious and racial prejudices in Hazara area .This
would not be wrong to admit that his imagination is trapped by the growing religious extremism
and targeted sectarian attacks there .
His inspiration is the “identity” (mainly referring
sect) and the “facial features” of the people of his area. He opines that the people are killed
sometimes “mistakenly” because of their specific features and under the prevalent age of
terrorism, ironically every one ends up wearing “masks”, which mimics the individual’s
presence.
The canvas titled “RISHWALA” (Persian word meaning a person with beard) is its self image
depicting a man wearing helmet to disguise his “real self”. He is what he is not! The same
message is conveyed in “CHEHRA-E-DEDAARE-AMIN” in which he portrays his college
friends who suffer the same identity issue in and outside Hazara.
3. One cannot ignore “FAMILY” in which children are shown
with one head (of the family) missing. Although this might be a traditional family photograph
image but the message it conveys through the starring gaze of the children is very depressing. All
the children represent typical Hazara facial features and question the audience of this social
injustice and increasing threats to the lives of the people of Hazara and its surroundings. In a
decorative and illustrative manner the artist succeeds in compelling the viewer to think and make
a judgment. His lingering memories of motherland compel him to become a voice of so many
innocents; targeted and brutally killed.
Hoor Ahmad the miniature artist comes up with a unique subject matter of “inherited disease”
and its effect on the patient and the whole family. She use gauche on vasli for her huge canvasses
painted in bold and vibrant colours. Discussing the painful occurrence of inherited breast cancer
in a family, Hoor opines that the number of women suffering this disease is growing faster every
day and it’s so painful to see changes a patient suffer in the body (inside and out) and even in
relationships .The beautifully rendered detailed work, typical of traditional miniature style on
vasli enhances the beauty of her canvass. Water as a symbol of hope is used frequently in the
foreground and the background. She also uses video installation to present water as the main
source of energy and optimism. Bold blues, reds and orange dominate her work.
Most disappointing is the work by the artists of
painting discipline who fill the first main gallery. The feet of their exhibit seem to be merely fun
rather than deep stuff. On the contrary in the second gallery the work of Fatima Batool gives
4. peek into the strange and disturbing “world of chiaroscuro”. Her grotesque, monster-cum cock
headed faces compel the viewer to stand and observe. Rendered in surrealist manner the animal
faces growing out of human bodies and the weird somewhere un-finished images make the
canvas very gloomy. These disturbing art pieces show the darker side to the artistic world and
give deep meaningful insight towards artist’s inner feelings and thoughts. She use charcoal and
graphite chalk to reveal the fear that creates uncertainty, distrust and melancholy.
In the sculpture discipline Karim Ahmad Khan
comes up with contemporary ideas based on inspirations from nature and the fantasy world. His
work titled “SKY LIGHT “and “the FOREST OF THE FROZEN LIGHT “compel the viewer to
touch and feel his work. He use glue on fish wire that takes the form of thin strands that are
grouped together to create the effect of “pouring rain”.
Along with these the number of other students too showcased their talents and gave expression to
their ideas with the help of their chosen media and techniques of execution.
Over all the thesis show give a platform to the amateur artists to realize and strengthen their
creative potentials through experimentation in their respective discipline. Best of luck to all!!
The writer is a freelance journalist based in Lahore. She can be reached at
ayeshamajeed2015@gmail.com
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