An exhibition of exquisite paintings by four artists — Mashkoor Raza, Mughees Riaz, Ufaq Ehsan and Arjumand Husain — opens at Nomad Art Gallery today (Saturday).
Mashkoor Raza is a senior artist who studied Fine Arts from the Karachi School of Art. He is an established signature in figurative abstract. He creates transparency with basic forms of a square, circle and triangle, as well as abstract images of women and horses. He is inspired by the solar eclipse so he paints the moon and the eclipsed sun.
Mughees Riaz has always been interested in landscape painting, with Monet’s rendering of sunset being a source of inspiration. He depicts buffaloes, which are almost as much a part of the landscape as crows, lending a weight, density, and contrast, almost like an anchor to the surrounding landscape. All these elements are characteristic of Punjabi landscapes. Riaz’s work, however, differs from that of most landscape artists in that it is a study, not of the objects that make up the landscape but of space and the quality of light.
Since sunset is a short span of time in the sub-continent, Mughees has a very small window in which to observe and paint. He usually takes three days to complete a painting. On the first day, he paints in one layer, quickly capturing the colours for as long as light allows.
The following day, he returns to the same place at the same time and further works, using his memory of the previous sunset as an aid. On the third day, again at the chosen spot, he paints in detail. His medium is oil, which lends his paintings a transparency and luminescence characteristic of work by older artists.
Ufaq Ehsan holds a Bachelors degree in Fine Arts from the National College of Arts, Lahore. She has been working in mix-media and has been developing her own techniques. “Trying to harmonise different mediums is like harmonising different aspects of one’s life. The unique collaboration of colours affects the mind and soul to create a sense of peace and harmony,” she said. Ufaq has participated in numerous art exhibitions.
Arjumand Hussain has been an avid photographer all his life until the last decade, when he picked up the brush and started painting. With no formal training, he experimented with colour compositions and started to develop a style of his own abstract compositions. The windows that one often finds in his work are a reflection of his ambitions in life; some he achieved and some he is still striving to achieve. His interest in music, poetry and photography has helped him develop a style of his own.
The exhibition will continue at Nomad Art Gallery (22-Justice Abdur Rashid Road, Sector F-6/1) till December 30.