Nowadays art activities has taken a fast pace in the city and with the inauguration of new art galleries in Karachi, which promote art on regular basis by arranging regular exhibitions. I say the future of art is bright, because every art piece wants to be appreciated and recognised by the viewer and that viewer ship is provided by the art galleries only, which act as a bridge between the artists and the art lovers.
The art of painting and calligraphy both gives a message of peace, love and brotherhood. And the artists with the help of their work spread awareness among the masses. The canvas and the colours together provides a medium to the artist to express himself/herself and create such a master piece that makes the viewers to ponder upon.
Such pieces of art by the artists Ahmed Khan, Moazzam Ali and Ramzan Shad were on display at Fine Art Pakistan (FAP) Gallery, Karachi. This new art gallery is the venue of valuable artworks by renowned artist. The gallery aims to work for the promotion and projection of the art in the city.
One of the most famous calligraphers Ahmed Khan's work has evolved through time and his own experience. This has been possible through his prolific exploration of not only his original technique but also philosophical insights of peace and harmony. His calligraphy at the exhibition shows the same unique quality. At the same time his work is compositionally very controlled.
His unique aesthetic sensibility finds expression in his artworks. His use of colours is bold and his strokes and gestures and free flowing. He has used calligraphic strokes and colours in an esthetical manner. One such example is the way in which he has placed a dark and a completely contrasting environment together. The symmetry in the compositions is remarkable.
The Quranic verses along with the beauty of colour enhanced with the glitter of gold leaf and splendour of silver enrich his calligraphy thus providing visual pleasure. Each line seems to be meticulously thought out and skilfully placed. Nothing in his work seems like a random scribbling, in fact there is methodical disarray in his work. On the other hand alluring images documenting cultural and historical aspects of Thari women's life, on large scale canvases by Moazzam Ali were a delight for art lovers.
The unique features of Thari women with attractive colourful dresses and bangles covered hands up to the shoulders seems to appeals him a lot. Centuries old heritage of Indus civilisation still the same as ever ignorant of the outer world.
He captured the woman of Thar in his canvases along with their moments of joy, sorrows, astonishment, confusion and dreams. It gives him a source to discuss his aesthetic experiences and discover hidden creative energy that turns his canvas into a colourful composition based on his observations and concepts. The creative impulse inside him made him to express his feelings in terms of drawings and paintings. The village damsels from Thar are his main focus, a symbol which he portrays to explain life journey of centuries old people through time immemorial.
He tried to link past with the present as the present is not different from the past - same old traditions are part of Thari people life. His paintings depicts Thari woman with a 'Matka' (pitcher), as we know water is the basic unit of life and considered a treasure in a desert, therefore when you visit Thar you can often see groups of Thari women going to fetch water.
Moazzam's gestural strokes compose delightful textures with flesh and fabric to capture the inner essence of the female figure draped in beautiful flowing garments of sharp tones look like flowers blooming in a desert full of sand and hot winds. It is Ramazan Shad's concept of beauty which results in the manifestation of his art pieces. Each work seems to be so realistic that the viewer could not help praising it.
His balanced palette with various hues of fine colours shows what the nature wants to say. His strong movement of brush and bold strokes creates a symphony and rhythm between the subject and the background creating serenity, silence and stillness in the paintings. The combination of high tone colours and powerful sketches of boats in a unique style harbouring at seashore is outstanding and soft colour splashes makes the compositions more vibrant.
He portrays landscapes and seascapes through a vivid imagery which communicate with the viewer who can visualise these places and can sense and feel the ambience like cool breeze and greenery and of course the smell of sea. He paints the dwellings of mountainous region with emotions and fervour and produces fresh and unique compositions which are skilfully created.
Filling his palette through the inspirations taken from nature Ramazan uses coloured spots at different places in his works to create a movement in the canvas. Overall it was a nicely arranged exhibition. The Fine Art Pakistan Gallery is a fresh breeze in the art world of Karachi. I hope that such efforts will help find new talent and promote actual basis of arts and creativity in Islamic calligraphy and contemporary art as well. nadeemzuberi71@gmail.com