Art bazaar: Buy art to hedge famine

Capital gallery exhibits works of 29 artists, proceeds will go to Thar victims.

ISLAMABAD: In an effort to promote art and simultaneously help address a calamity, My Art World exhibited the works of 29 emerging artists here on Sunday as a fundraiser for the victims of the Thar famine.

The spirit of Pakistan Day was celebrated with much enthusiasm in trying to promote causes to keep the nation intact. A Pakistan flag streamer stretched across the entrance.



Unlike a traditional art gallery, the paintings were lathered on the walls of the gallery’s driveway.

My Art World Chief Executive Officer Zainab Omar said that the gallery was trying to encourage emerging artists who were exploring new techniques and mediums.

To make the event inviting, she said that the display in the main driveway was not just grasping the attention of art lovers, but all the passersby who would just walk in and explore art.

“It’s a new kind of an experience of not just buying but learning about art. Going to exhibitions has become a social affair which can be intimidating,” she said. “Art should not only be affordable but approachable at the same time.”

“In today’s times where there is freedom of speech, at the same time censorship is a hurdle in the process of expression,” said Omar. “There is so much happening around us which is captured in art and portrayed in a beautiful way,” she added.



To promote the work of artists, the gallery has also been using social media as a platform allowing more than hundred artists to showcase their work on the internet. This is to bring them together on one platform.

My Art World Curator Zara Sajid said different mediums, textures and techniques were offered within a decent range.

The collection is assortment of original compositions of artists in form of portraits, landscape and abstract art. “It has something for everyone,” said Sajid. “A wide variety at the bazaar allows people to skim through different mediums and explore art for themselves,” she added.

Work by Usman Ahmed, Muniba Khurram, Zara Sajid, Xahra Hafeez, Maha Ahmed, Nayha Jehangir Khan, Faizaan Ahab to name a few were on display. The daylong affair witnessed a great turnout of people who had come to support the cause.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 24^th, 2014.