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Art historian explores creative links of 1920s

Our Correspondent February 17, 2026 Less than a minute read

Visitors view selected works at the NOOR-E-QALAM Calligraphy Students’ Exhibition at the National Art Gallery, Islamabad. Held under the auspices of the Pakistan National Council of the Arts (PNCA), the exhibition showcases Quranic verses and the beautifully rendered names of Allah created by students who completed a six-month calligraphy course. Photo: Raja Zafar/Express

LAHORE:

Art historian Marcella Sirhandi analysed the works and contexts of Abdur Rahman Chughtai in Lahore, members of the Tagore family in Calcutta and Angelo da Fonseca in Trinidad in a seminar hosted by the Punjab University Postgraduate Research Centre of Creative Arts on Monday. The seminar offered an in-depth exploration of the dynamic exchanges shaping modern Indian and Pakistani artistic identities in the 1920s.

Dr Sirhandi, a distinguished scholar specialising in South Asian art history, is Professor Emeritus at Oklahoma State University in the United States.

The session was attended by prominent academicians and researchers.

Dr Sirhandi presented historical research examining cultural intersections in art, with emphasis on innovation, political conflict, Partition-era transitions and royal patronage. She analysed the works and contexts of Chughtai in Lahore, members of the Tagore family in Calcutta and Angelo da Fonseca Trindad, highlighting the dynamic exchanges shaping modern Indian and Pakistani artistic identities in the 1920s.

Her engagement with modern Indian and Pakistani painters sparked a thought-provoking discussion.