Dreams of Stones: Henri Souffay’s work is set in stone but shines on paper too

His pieces are painstakingly undertaken in pen and ink and soft pastel on paper and range from Rs21,000 to Rs52,500.


Our Correspondent February 16, 2012

KARACHI:


Henri Souffay came to Pakistan for the woman he loved and fell in love with the land as well. His latest series of artwork, Dreams of Stones, which has gone up at ArtChowk - the Gallery, is about that journey. 


His pieces are painstakingly undertaken in pen and ink and soft pastel on paper and range from Rs21,000 to Rs52,500. While Gothic pieces depicting the European leg of his trip are part of the series, collectors in Pakistan would perhaps be more interested in his ‘Going East’ work.

These pieces are vibrant with colour and mindboggling precision. They capture a wide array of subjects, from parrots to Mohatta Palace, Hiran Minar, jali and peacocks.

According to the gallery’s curator, Bushra Hussain, Souffay had spent the last 30 years of life dividing his time between France and Karachi. “His art changes with the geographical setting,” she said. “He is always working with a concept.”

In the artist’s statement, he talks about how arcades, domes, columns, lattice and mosaics have their own vocabulary to write their own stories and dreams. According to the artist, marble or sandstone buildings of the past still have a lot of memories to share with us, a lot of stories to tell, but they leave it to us to see, hear, and feel them. “With my own simple tools, pen and ink,” he said. “Let me try to share with you what they told me.”

Souffay was born in 1949 in Brittany, France and is a self  - taught artist. He moved to Karachi in 1974 as a French language teacher and worked with the Alliance Francaise. He held his first exhibition in 1982. He likes to work with ink as it gives him the opportunity to make detailed drawings.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 17th, 2012.

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