ART FACTS: A role model of resilience, perseverance

A significant decade of art development in Pakistan was witnessed in 1960s. Art received a great boost and exposure throughout the country, and Karachi also experience flowering of emerging talented youth - and Shahid Sajjad was one of the talented artists of that time.
With the death of Shahid Sajjad the art scene of our country has lost a genius and created a vacuum in the genre of sculptors. Shahid Sajjad was the most prominent sculptor of Pakistan in fact; he was the pioneer of this particular genre of art in the country and has given it much needed credibility. He passed away on 28th July morning after a protracted illness.
Born in 1936 in Muzaffarnagar (UP), the power of Shahid Sajjad's vocation can be witnessed through his incredible collection of works. Especially; his free spirit could relate well with the works of Gauguin. In his hands, the tools acquired almost a life of their own as images took shape. His sculptures were structurally so strong that one can sense a powerful elemental force in them.
His talent and individuality of work was recognised in 1964 when he exhibited his paintings, drawings and carved wall based reliefs at Karachi Arts Council. But he was not satisfied with such recognition and spent many years travelling in Europe and Asia on a motorbike in quest for knowledge.
While wandering in different countries and appreciating the wood-carvings of Bali, Philippines and Japan he encountered a relief in wood by Paul Gauguin at Louvre Museum, Paris, which brought revelation in Shahid's life. This particular wood relief gripped his attention and there he realised that this was what he meant to do. And in the coming years, Shahid was continuously influenced by Gauguin. It is interesting to note that this wood carving is the only carving Paul Gauguin ever made during his lifetime.
His special skill made him self-reliant and confident since the early time. His work was the focus of his existence and so after returning Karachi Shahid got frustrated due to unavailability of a museum for reference or a teacher to guide him. His urge to carve and sculpt different forms again took him to a long trip to the Chittagong hill tracts, now Bangladesh in 1965.
Shahid spend two years of constant practice and learning in the forest of Rangamati with the Chakma tribe. There he found solitude with unlimited material at his disposal and freedom of time to work.
When Shahid exhibited a collection of large life-sized carved forms titled 'My Primitives' in Karachi it causes a stir in the art circle throughout the country. His sculptors left a deep impression on the whole art community because no Pakistani sculptor had ever attempted life-size figures in wood before.
The series was based on the life of the Rangamati hill tracts people. He wanted to express what he observed while spending time with them. He said about them, "We are insensitive people, alienated from our surroundings. These so called primitives are so much more in harmony with their own needs and their environment."
Shahid was equally at ease with bronze casting. He studied the processes with a Japanese master of the art on a trip to Japan. His continued search for knowledge and his obsession to carve wood and sculpt forms led him to numerous journeys, which provide him opportunities to learn and quench his thirst for art.
In later years, he has worked on monumental carved forms, nationally acknowledged by way of awards. There is a large bronze relief in the Maritime Museum, Karachi, titled, 'Guardian of the Sea', a work titled 'Cavalry through the Ages' stands in Nowshera, the pride of the Armoured Corps.
He participated in important art events in many countries and he continued to explore avenues of expression, creating textured bronze pieces, and wood carving traced by fire. A few years back a retrospective exhibition of renowned sculptor was a benchmark event in Pakistan's art history- including over 100 art pieces of drawings, sculptures, wall-based relief pieces in wood and bronze from 1963 to 2009 at the Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture, Karachi.
There is a monograph on Shahid Sajjad, titled "Shahid Sajjad's Sculpture: Collected Essays" written by Akbar Naqvi for the art enthusiasts to learn more about the artist's adventurous life. The Arts Council of Pakistan, Karachi held a tribute ceremony last week for the late artist where friends and colleagues of sculptor Shahid Sajjad paid tribute to the artist and highlight his achievements in art and his different lifestyle.
Over the years during four decades Shahid has contributed an incredible collection of works to the art world in the shape of drawings, sculptures, wall-based relief pieces in wood and bronze. Shahid is a role model of resilience, perseverance, purposefulness in life, innovation, excellence, courage and intellectual honesty. He was a genius with a simple philosophy, 'live every day to the full then tomorrow is of no consequence'.
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