The lake is already awake when the artists arrive. Houseboats rock gently, fastened more by habit than rope. Nets dry in uneven arcs along their wooden spines. Children lean over the water’s edge, watching reflections rupture and reform. For five…
The cultural and economic value of textile craft micro-enterprises is often visible in present-day urban centres, projects led by non-profits, and consumerist practices in Pakistan. Reading through definitions of textile craft4, one comes across descriptions referring to activities engaged with…
Last year, I visited ‘The Haveli Museum’ in Karachi, where the exhibition The Coat of Many Colours displayed textile-based crafts from Sindh. These objects included bujhki16, coverlets, and posh17, among several others. Observing these items stirred a quiet nostalgia for…
This essay is based on an interview between the author and Karachi-born, Brooklyn-based artist Hiba Schahbaz. Hiba Schahbaz’s paintings look autobiographical; self-portraiture is a recurring theme representing her unknown and unresolved cognitive musings. However, the contexts shift visually between the…
Textiles are one of humanity’s oldest inventions, yet they renew endlessly. From the earliest woven fragments of the Indus Valley to the intricate embroideries of modern-day Pakistan, dyed, embroidered, and stitched cloth has carried memory, identity, and the accumulated knowledge…
When Zohra Husain opened Chawkandi Art gallery, in September of 1985, it was the era of Ali Imam’s Indus Gallery. Writing in The Star, columnist Irfan Husain was sceptical of this new “venture.” While he welcomed the gallery as an…
The Degree Show for the Masters of Visual Arts program at the National College of Arts showcased the works of eleven artists. Artists enrolled in the program often have some experience exhibiting, while others have prolific careers with regular shows…
Emerging from the fertile Ganges plains, where the river Megna37 flowed, was a textile celebrated for its ethereal qualities. As light as the wind, and clear as the dew, the Indian Muslins, or ‘malmal’, were a delicate, sheer handwoven cotton…
As the garden’s gate opened, an enchanting floral aroma fused with the essence of humanity, soaked profoundly into the soul--- awakening forgotten memories of joyfulness and serenity. The whiff was rich with the fragrance of passion, commitment, quest, and vitality.…
Folktales are not born of chance. “Folktale” has always been an umbrella term encapsulating the whole range of traditional oral narratives. 59 The resilient nature of oral storytelling reflects an interplay of linguistic and social interactions, historical transformations, and the…
