Paying tribute: Imran Mir remembered as ‘guru whose creativity was exceptional'

The late artist died on October 28 last year at the age of 64

KARACHI: Imran Mir was a guru whose creativity and humour were exceptional.

This was said by Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture (IVS) co-founder and architect Shahid Abdullah at a gathering arranged in memory of the late artist, Mir. Friends, family, fans and colleagues gathered at the IVS to pay their respects to Mir who was a founding member of the varsity. Mir passed away on October 28 last year at the age of 64.

The panellists at the gathering described Mir as a humble yet creative man, who was of the belief that education was becoming highly materialistic and generating graduates who are productive only in the economic sense.

Abdullah called Mir his design guru. Citing his designs as simple and honest, he said that the late artist was free to think crazy and was always himself. Speaking about his contributions to advertising, he said that Mir produced some of the most extraordinary logos for brands like the IVS, The Citizens Foundation and Hunar Foundation. "He created up to 3,000 logos and didn't charge any money for 2,500 of them."

Shedding further light on Mir's expertise in advertising, Tannaz Minwalla, a member of the IVS academic committee, said that Mir brought maturity to local brands and raised them to international standards. "It is through working under him that we learnt not to accept second best designs but keep improving it," she said. "He was a perfectionist at heart."

JJ Media chairperson and executive director Javed Jabbar reminisced about his days in school with Mir's wife, Nighat Mir, who was like a family member to him. He said that he got to know Imran Mir professionally when he designed a logo for the first Pakistan Advertising Congress.

"As a person, Imran was a combination of contradictions," he said. "On the one hand, he chose to be a part of advertising that is so loud and intrusive and, at the same time, he was an artist of secrecy."

Speaking about his works, Jabbar said that Mir's last book should not only be promoted but made a standard reference point in libraries and houses.

The evening ended with a video clip, shared by Mir's family about his wife, work and what people have to say about them.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 17^th, 2015.