‘Experimental’ is how the artists behind the Drawing Conclusions – the black and white sketches and prints exhibited at the Lahore Arts Council – describe their work.
The exhibit opened on Tuesday and will continue till January 29.
Of the three National College of Arts graduates, two – Anushka Rustumji and Ali Mansur – had painted the human figure as their final year projects. Zara Asghar had majored in print making.
For Rustumji and Mansur, sketching with black, blue and grey pens and charcoal marked a departure from the mediums they were comfortable with for so long: acrylic, oil or water colours.
“It is best to explore. You move on from the ideas and techniques you learn in school. It is quite a leap, but I enjoy sketching free-hand. It allows me to be more expressive,” says Rustumji. She has three pen and charcoal sketches on display that are inspired from “personal dreams and journeys”.
“It is refreshing,” is how Rustumji describes the switch. She is planning on doing more sketches for exhibitions in Islamabad and Karachi, along with Mansur and Ashghar.
As opposed to Rustumji’s personal journeys, Mansur’s art pieces make a statement about “a common practice among Pakistanis: of abusing religious texts and God’s name to draw personal benefit or gain power.”
In The Name of Him shows a battle scene. The black flag at the upper corner represents religion, says Mansur. Another piece shows Jesus Christ with “a feeble and a confused expression”. “I am not against religion. I just oppose the abuse of religion,” he says.
At 25, Mansur feels it is important to break boundaries by experimenting in a medium one was not been comfortable with. “In my thesis, I had explored brush strokes and colours while painting the male body. It was very fantastical.”
Zara Asghar has three pieces that show women draped in fur duvets and shawls. Her work explores “the correlation between discomfort and comfort women experience when they cover up.”
“Women wrap themselves to protect themselves against awkward gazing. [But] it also discourages them from making an effort to dress up and look better. Drawing too much comfort from doing so can be uncomfortable, perhaps even harmful,” explains Asghar.
“It can also be suffocating for those who cover up as a way of showing respect for accepted societal practices,” she adds.
The pieces range between Rs15,000 and Rs20,000.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 25th, 2013.