Inner palette exhibition aims to fight cancer via art

The initiative is a contribution by artists who donated their paintings to Habdullah Welfare Society

LAHORE: As many as 30 paintings by 26 young and senior artists were displayed at Shakir Ali Museum (SAM) in an exhibition titled as “inner palette” with the aim to fight cancer.

The exhibition was arranged by Pakistan National Council of Arts, Shakir Ali Museum, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and National Heritage in collaboration with Habdullah Welfare society (HSW) - an organisation working for the rehabilitation of cancer patients among other social issues.

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According to SAM Director Amna Pataudi, the museum always encouraged artists to promote social awareness through workshops and art residency programs.

“This initiative is a contribution of artists who have donated their paintings to Habdullah Welfare Society that works to rehabilitate cancer affected families,” she said.



For this exhibition, we decided to invite artists who could relate to this trauma directly or indirectly, she added. She said that the exhibition highlighted passion of individuals who donated their art work to fight cancer, with the objective to play a constructive role in building social awareness. Amna said that the artists of Pakistan had always stood next to the nation in critical times through their intellectual and mature contributions.



HSW President Dr Ehsan Ur Rehman said that while there were many artists addressing social concerns individually, this particular exhibition was unique as there was no precedent of donating their work for a cause on such theme. He said that under the umbrella of Hubdullah, he had six major projects including monthly ration scheme, supporting student fees, medical and health care program and a cancer drug bank among others.

Some artists whose work was on display included, Sara Riaz Khan, Sadia Sajid, Faiza Taufique, Shireen Rasul, Fatimah Naeem, Najmul-Hassan and Fahim Baber among others.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, July 19^th, 2017.