A diverse range: Alliance Française displays six of Karachi's best

The art exhibition was organised to mark the opening of its library.

To mark the opening of its library, the Alliance Française displayed the works of six artists, showcasing a diverse variety of artistic styles.

The exhibition, titled 'Six Painters of Karachi' featured the works of Paul Mehdi Rizvi, Omar Farid, Babar Moghal, Henri Souffay, Scharjeel Sarfaraz and Mohammad Akram Spaul.

Each artist used a different medium for their paintings, leading to distinctly unique end results for all of them. However, it was not just the medium, or even the type of art that they painted, that set the artists apart; it was also the inspiration behind the art.

"I paint within the quadrant of figurative and non-representational abstraction, surrealism and psychedelia," said Farid, who dabbled in the abstract, using acrylic on paperboard for his brightly coloured paintings. "I paint purely on whim; impulse wills me, instinct guides me, passion powers me."

French artist Souffay, who used a fine pen and ink on paper to bring the best out of his delicate and intricate handiwork, wanted to create a new world for the viewer and therefore used a lot of detail in his art. "I would like these drawings - where the elements are juxtaposed, connected and sometimes confronted - to be for the viewer an access to another world, a world of dreams or regrets, desires or memories; different pathways where the visitor may engage," he said.

On the other hand, Spaul used simplicity as his main weapon; his work strikingly plain, almost exclusively portraying daily objects, leaving its interpretation entirely up to the audience. "My paintings are quite simplistic and real in approach, in which my keen observation of common objects of daily life plays a vital role," he said. "You see an ordinary piece of furniture, door, window, shutters, teapot and fruits coming to life with masterly details. Evidently this is my style. I prefer realism and like to see life in its simple form avoiding complications all around."

Published in The Express Tribune, May 17^th, 2014.