Looking at the Land: ‘Mountains have mysterious moods’

LAHORE:

A group show featuring Kaleem Khan, Zarah David, Mughees Riaz and Zulfiqar Ali Zulfi opened at Nairang Art Gallery on Friday. The exhibition, titled Looking at Land, features 14 paintings.

“I paint imaginative compositions. Vibrant hues play a very important role in communicating with my audience,” says Zarah David. “Soft, dreamy tones or dramatic compositions transport us to a world where your vision and soul can come together to tell a story.”

She has used oil on canvas in three paintings and a mixed media in the fourth. David had secured a gold medal during her MFA from the Department of Fine Arts, Punjab University, in 1965.

Mughees Riaz has displayed two paintings, both with oil on canvas.

“Nature, for me is very personal and abstract. Sunrise and sunsets are fascinating moments of the day. A change of colours in the sky heralds a new day. Later, light fades, and night falls,” he says.



“The birth of man and his return to dust is an unending sequence. Nothing can be more amazing than this,” he says.

“There is a deep pathos in this. There is a new hope, a new aspiration in every moment. That is the beauty of the universe” says Riaz.

He says capturing this beauty was the essence of his paintings. “Every picture is an expression of unwanted pain and unknown happiness. These pictures are not mine any longer, they belong to the world,” he adds.

“I realised over a period of time that mountains are rich in colour and have moods of their own. Changing seasons reflect these complex moods,” Kaleem Khan says of his four paintings displayed at the gallery. “I was fascinated by colourful clothes and embroidery worn by women in Quetta, my hometown. These women used to sew small mirrors on dresses, which then resembled starry skies.” “I had always been inspired by landscapes but the medium changed over time.” he says. Khan says changing seasons had inspired some of his landscapes. Zulfiqar Ali Zulfi has four oil paintings at the show. He describes painting as his passion. He did his masters from NCA in Fine Arts.

Amna Hussain curated the show.

“I selected the works according to the theme, which was landscapes. Landscapes are basics of art,” she said.

She says all artists in the group show had vast experience and had unique techniques to depict landscapes.

“Some have painted realistically while others have made it abstract,” she said. “Regardless, they have created a language capable of recording the sensations we experience when we observe our environment,” she said “I have provided a bit of breathing room between displays so people can take in as much from one image as possible before moving to the next one” she says.

The exhibition will continue until November 29.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 16^th, 2015.