What’s Not in This Portrait

By MELIK KAYLAN

The overriding question you will likely take into the Asia Society’s show of Pakistani artists is, “What do they think of what’s happening to their country?” How do artists address the Islamist violence in their midst—and if they don’t address it, why not? How freely can they treat such issues without fear of reprisal? What kind of art flourishes in such surroundings?

Merchant collection nets £653,000, necklace at £55,200

Oct. 8: Indian-born producer-director Ismail Merchant’s personal art collection sold for £653,000 at an auction by Christie’s in London.

The highest price was paid for the painting by Hungarian artist August Theodor Schoefft, entitled The Thugs of India halt at the shrine of Ganesh, which was sold for £91,250 to a private British collector. The unusually large painting was estimated to sell for £70,000-100,000.

Lahore Arts Council to host international moot

LAHORE: The Lahore Arts Council (LAC) will host an International Literary and Cultural Conference in the second week of November. Addressing a meeting on Tuesday to review administrative arrangements for the conference, LAC Chairman Ataul Haq Qasmi said it was part of the council’s efforts to promote literary and cultural activities. Internationally-acclaimed writers and critics would present their essays in the conference. Indian writers had also been invited, which would help strengthen relations between the two neighbouring countries

First Gurmukhi course concludes

By Ali Usman

LAHORE: The graduates of the first Gurmukhi Certificate Course were awarded certificates on Wednesday after the completion of the course at the Punjab Institute of Language, Art and Culture (PILAAC).

The Gurmukhi Learning Certificate Course – the first course of its kind in Pakistan to teach the Gurmukhi script of Punjabi commenced at the institute last month. Some 35 students were registered for the course, of which 21 qualified the final examination. Gurmukhi is the universal script used for writing Punjabi, and is quite close to the Hindi script. In Pakistan, the Shahmukhi script (also called the Persian script by some) is used for writing Punjabi.

Dancing in Lahore

‘Lahore is a city that has to fight for its cultural survival. The growing influence of the Taliban, although hundreds of kilometres to the north-west, has been mirrored by a more insidious, creeping attack on culture throughout the country. On Jan 2, the bullet-ridden body of Shabana Gul, a dancing girl, was dumped in the centre of Mingora, the north-western district of Swat’s main town.But the growing cultural conservatism has had more subtle reverberations.In December, Lahore’s High Court barred the graceful and elaborate dancing girls, who first developed in the Moghal courts 400 years ago, from performing in public, on the grounds that they were too sexually explicit.

Mystique of treasures

Source here

ON March 10, 1957, in a run down house in Model Town, Lahore, died the last grandchild of the greatest ruler of the Punjab, Maharajah Ranjit Singh. The few remaining ‘treasures’ of the Lahore Darbar still left with Princess Bamba, mainly oil paintings of the 19th century, were ‘gifted’ to the government. They are today displayed in Rani Jindan’s Palace in the Lahore Fort.

Princess Bamba died a virtual pauper. She refused to leave Lahore. Her father, Maharajah Dulip Singh, had been robbed of his ‘rightful’ treasures by the British government, leaving him to die in 1893 in Paris, as a bankrupt refugee.

Remembering Zahoor ul Akhlaq (1941-1999) in Lahore

Raza Rumi

It is not easy to write about Zahoor ul Akhlaq (1941-1999), an artist whose life and work in so many ways encapsulates the troubled soul of Pakistan. Ten years ago, on a grey, brutal January day, the great artist Akhlaq and his gifted daughter, Jahanara, were shot dead. This was not a run-of-the-mill incident. The innate humanism of Akhlaq and his family was shattered to bits, much like the splintered state of Pakistan, where art and life are either marginalised, silenced or blown to pieces.On this January afternoon, Shahbaz Butt, an acquaintance of Pappu Sain, shot Jahanara and her fiancé, Al-Noor. Jahanara, 24 years old at the time, fell on the ground, to die. The noise, alarming Akhlaq and his fellow artist Anwar Saeed, sent them rushing in to see what had happened. Anwar Saeed was injured by Shahbaz, who shot Akhlaq. He died on the spot..Shahbaz now languishes in jail, while Pakistan is deprived of two inimitable souls. It is unclear what prompted Shahbaz to wreak this senseless violence: drugs, inability to cope with life or an extreme sense of inadequacy that could only be corrected through violence.

read more here

Exhibition – A tribute to old Lahore

Martin Lings Memorial Lecture & Environment Symposium

Alam-al-Khayal and WWF-Pakistan invite you to

Quranic Clarifications on the Environment Crisis

18-20 December 2008, Ali Auditorium, Ferozepur Road

“It is the nature of God to wish to communicate itself”- Alam-al-Khayal aspires to participate in this self-revelation of the Sovereign Good, doing so with a particular emphasis on reviving traditional knowledge and disciplines through lectures, symposie, film documentaries and workshops on sacred scholarship.

You are invited to attend

• The Martin Lings Memorial Lecture, “Art and the Real” by Kamil Khan Mumtaz Sahib at 7pm on 18 December at the Ali Auditorium;

• “A Quranic Response to “An Inconvenient Truth” by Dr. Reza Shah-Kazemi at 7pm on 19 December at the Ali Auditorium; and

• “Sacred Signs & Environmental Solutions” – An Environment Symposium (in Urdu) at 10.30am on 20 December at the Ali Auditorium.

Speakers at the Symposium will include

• Mr. Iqbal Ahmed Qarshi, Qarshi Foundation
• Mr. Ali H. Habib, WWF-Pakistan
• Ms. Nudrat B. Majeed, Alam-al-Khayal
• Mr. Masood Arshad & Ms. Marriyum Aurangzeb
• Mr. Suheyl Umar
• Mr. Ahmad Rafay Alam, Advocate (and Lahore Nama contributer!)

Bashir Mirza’s paintings on display

* Work receives great appreciation n Visitor says young artists could use such exhibitions to improve artistic skills

Daily Times Report

LAHORE: The last of the bohemian paintings by the late Bashir Mirza were put on display at the Ejaz Art Gallery to highlight the noted artist’s work and life on Saturday. The paintings were not the original ones, instead, they were the digital prints of the original paintings.

Financial troubles plague the arts: Croweaters closes its doors

* By Afnan Khan

LAHORE: Croweaters, the art gallery situated in a 150-year-old building in Anarkali, may soon be closing its doors as the owners have decided, in principle, to shut it down due to a perceived lack of appreciation of the liberal arts.

The gallery’s fate appears to have been directly tied to that of its owner, MP Bhandara, who died in a road accident in June 2008, during his visit to China. Bhandara and his family have owned the site for more than 150 years and his ancestors used to both live in the current art gallery and run several businesses, including a restaurant, a café, a liquor shop and finally an art gallery.

The gallery was officially launched under the name of Croweaters in 1999 — a name Bhandara chose to depict his affection for his sister, Bapsi Sidhwa, who has earned world renown for her books, including The Crow Eaters, The Bride and An American Brat. From the time it started until now, the gallery has hosted dozens of art exhibitions, including works by Tasaduq Suhail, Changaiz Sultan, Mashkoor Raza and Naheed Raza. The gallery also contains a collection of 200 rare paintings created by famous painters such as Gulgee, Sadqain and Ahmad Khan. Speaking to Daily Times, one of the gallery workers said that the people working in the place were true art lovers and had developed an emotional relationship to the gallery due to both its artistic background and their affiliation with MP Bhandara.

minorities artwork finds esteem in Lahore

Rashmi Talwar writes on how the minorities artwork finds esteem in Lahore

Ancient artwork finds a semblance of esteem at Cooco’s Den in Lahore

Nothing surprises you more than finding a rich repository of Hindu, Buddhist, Jain and Christian ancient artifacts in the heart of Lahore, Pakistan.

Lahore’s Unique Artist – Mahboob Ali

Mahboob Ali, the only woodcut artist of Pakistan has sent me more images of his works. During our recent meeting in Lahore, he also told me how, over the decades, his work progressed and how hard he has tried to train more woodcut artists. I have posted several images of his works here .

Mahboob Ali is an intriguing yet simple personality with stories and real-life experiences of the intensive process of making woodcuts. Once can spend hours watching him use his hands and creative imagination.

The image above is extremely representative of his work. This work shows a contemporary picture of what happens outside one of the historical gates of old Lahore (the walled city).

More images here.

I will write more about our last meeting later.

Hot ’sexy’ Mujras have destroyed Lahore’s commercial theatre

Lahore was renowned for its experimental theatre and led the country’s art scene with its sizeable creed of artists, writers and directors. And, whilst that parallel culture of serious theatre is present, it has been sidelined by a crass and commercial brand of entertainment that was earlier popular for the lewd Punjabi jokes.

However, the newest brand consolidated during the 1990s has integrated the old Mujra form albeit in its destroyed shape. What has been the effect of this trend: women, children and families are not found in theatre halls. The larger purpose of theatre as an inclusive form of entertainment, interaction and participation is all decaying. Such is the impact of greed and commercialism. Commercial theatre is now a preserve for the oversexed, possibly under-laid male Lahoris; and rich men from the outskirts come to get a visual-lay to be supplemented by a real one besides the grand old mosque.

Today, someone forwarded this video and sent a link to a blog that has a collection of such stage-d mujras. It is noticeable for the Bollywood influence including the tattoos! I am not sure if they are that hot or sexy though this little “hot” number is redeemed by the attractive performer.

Well, watch it at your own risk!

Lahore:Alaap – Change Through Arts (Peace Candle Vigil on June 14)

Please join us at the one-day launching activity of the launching of Alaap Lahore Festival of Arts (ALFA: The Beginning) on Saturday, June 14, 2008 at Lahore Arts Council, The Mall, Lahore. The symbolic activity shall give two memorable sessions including classical, folk, ghazzal and popular singing while Ustad Tafu (The legend Tabla Player) shall display his unbelievable command on the most difficult musical instrument. Concluding the activity, the families, artists and peace activists shall organize a Peace Rally/Candle Vigil titling “Light a Candle for Peace in Pakistan”.
 
Join us with your flames.
 
The Alaap Lahore Festival of Arts (ALFA: The Beginning) has been postponed until November-2008. It was scheduled on June 9-14, 2008 at Lahore Arts Council, The Mall, Lahore. As the first-ever City-Festival of Pakistan, the festival was cut short to 3-day after Danish Embassy bomb blasts and ensuing “excuse” from our two mature donors related to the embassies that decided to close their missions in Pakistan. The 3-day festival, however, could not be organize due to the immense blockage of roads of Lahore especially Mall Road on 11-12th of June.

Lahore and Movies..

Originally uploaded by camber2k7

Lahore is an epicenter of movies in Pakistan. All movies have pretty much the same story and are anatomically similar. The goal for the actresses is to shake their largest bone in circular motion. Villain is a large mouth, perfectly fit for shouting profanities, hero on the other hand is a sissy-boyish person who takes away the freedom of speech of the villain, often dances with his boy friends and moves his bottom in a linear manner i.e. forward and back, and side to side. He eventually wins the motherly affections and lives happily thereafter with a former heroine.

picture and text by Anwar

Mughees Ejaz’s Art book launched in Lahore

A river runs through it: Mughees Ejaz displays work, launches book

LAHORE: An art exhibition and book launch titled “A River Runs Through It” by Mughees Riaz was opened at Ejaz Art Gallery on Friday.

The show features a number of prominent personalities and artists from across the country. Professor Saeed Akhtar graced the occasion with his presence. Talking to Daily Times, he said the artist’s work was simple and showed a lively attraction for bold designs.

Riaz painted the River Ravi bank, skim tides and luminous skies of Lahore, which illustrate the development of increasing skills over the years. Colin David wrote that Mughees was a painter with strong sense of design.

Grey Noise: the virtual art gallery: 11 artists to exhibit their work at Alhamra

LAHORE: Eleven artists from across the country will exhibit their work at Alhamra Art Gallery on Monday as part of the launching of Grey Noise, a virtual visual art gallery.

Grey Noise is a virtual gallery representing Pakistani artists. Founded by Umer Butt and Rehan B Shah, the website (www.greynoise.org) is being launched with a show featuring artists dealing with contemporary issues.

The work displayed by the artists differs in terms of variety and technique. One thing they have in common is their modern concepts. Ameen J, a Karachi-based photographer, has come to Lahore to shoot this show. He told Daily Times that artists could work better while working in groups.

Artist Imran Ahmad’ s sculptures deal with the issue of collectivism. His work shows that individuality has dominated the Pakistani society and people are not united, even when they are working together. The chairs arranged in rows behind a big chair materialise the idea.

These chairs symbolise people standing together for a prayer behind an imam (prayer leader), but differences are visible even at that time. “Some people do not like to stand with the poor, even for a prayer. This tells that how much individualism have taken up our society,” said Imran.

Other artists displaying their work include Fahd Burki, Amna Hashmi, Ayaz Jokhio, Ayesha Jatoi, Nadia Khawaja, Mehreen Murtaza, Lala Rukh, Fatima Saeed and Risham Syed.

Umer Butt, curator of the exhibition, said that Grey Noise aimed at establishing a gallery in the foreseeable future, hence providing its artists with a platform to showcase their work. “It is also in pursuit of a wider audience by networking with galleries and putting forth a contemporary aesthetic for a possible exchange and dialogue worldwide,” he added.

Courtesy – the Daily Times

Collectors to show Lahore’s old architecture

A report from the Daily Post
 
LAHORE: A group exhibition titled Shehr will open at the Collectors Galleria on April 28th at 6:30pm.

Almost four artists, Abdul Rahim, M Ilayas Rana, M Shafiq and Sarfraz Musawir will display over 11 pieces in this group show.

Their work is said to revolve around the old city architect. Each artist will present their paintings of old city grandeur, as perceived by themselves to carry in their own distinctive mark.

Another group exhibition will be displayed at the Alhamra Art Gallery on April 28th as part of the launch of Grey Noise, a virtual visual art gallery. Almost 11 artists will participate in the exhibition with variety of art forms and work, sculptures, photographs and paintings.

Ajoka Spring Theatre Festival to stage socially critical dramas

By Hina Farooq

LAHORE: The five-day Spring Theatre Festival by Ajoka Theatre opened on Friday at Alhamra, The Mall. The festival will be featuring a renowned Ajoka play as well as new plays in order to engage audiences with a more serious tone.

Many people are anticipating the new addition play ‘Hotel Mohenjodaro’, which will be staged on April 26 and April 27. The play is inspired by a short Urdu story by Ghulam Abbas, adapted by Shahid Nadeem and based on social issues. The story depicts a society ruled by religious fanatics and its overwhelming consequences.

The festival will feature theatre illustrating various social changes and themes of society with plays such as ‘Kala Meda Bhes’, which will be performed on April 28. The play is based on a real-life incident in Sindh, where a woman was traded for an ox. The story revolves around the woman, Sundri, who is initially humiliated at the exchange, then angry and eventually becomes determined to prove her worth as a human being. The play uses the folk theatre style of the Swaang and is a bold attempt, both thematically and in terms of style.

The third play Bala King is Shahid Nadeems Punjabi adaptation of Brecht’s ‘The Rise of Arturo Ui’. This will be staged on April 29. The story evolves as Ui is replaced by Bala, an unemployed leader of a wrestling group, who decides to leave Taxali Gate and tries his luck at the Badami Bagh Lorry Adda, a hub of inter-city road transport. A self-righteous businessman dominates the Lorry Adda. The play documents the Bala gang’s exploitation of the vulnerable groups of society and his misuse of physical strength to intimidate and blackmail people into accepting his unreasonable offers. The rise of Bala King and people’s inability to resist his advances exposes the weakness and susceptibility of society to violence, blackmail and corruption.

According to publicity by the theatre group, “The adaptation shows once again that Brecht is as relevant in Pakistan today as he was to Germany and Europe in the 40s.” Also it states, “Although an adaptation, Bala King is very relevant and meaningful to the Pakistani audience, where the spectre of autocratic rule looms large, where violence and crime appears to pay politically and where a complacent and acquiescent majority seems helpless against the forces of corruption, crime and violence.”

The play ‘Bulha’ staged on April 30 is predominantly based on the events of Bulleh Shah’s life, as communicated through his poetry, historical records and popular myths. The play reveals the majority of dramatic episodes in the life of Bulleh Shah. His search for truth, devotion to his mentor Shah Inayat, the conflict with intolerant clergy and corrupt nawabs as well as the opposition to war and bloodshed in the name of religion, are all integrated effectively in the play. The story also has relevance to present-day South Asia. ‘Bulha’ is not just a period play. It is also a celebration of the rich and vibrant culture of the Punjab.

The Panj Pani Festival was scheduled to be in Lahore during the same month, as was custom, but this time Indian delegates required to reach Pakistan could not get visas. That festival was thus postponed resulting in the organising of the spring festival.