Recently an artist publically spoke about how he gave up his established practice because he felt a conflict between art and his religious beliefs. It took him some years to resolve this, with extensive research and trusting the instinctive pull, he was able to return to Art. This conflict is deeply embedded and more persistent that we care to think. It is not likely to go away as long as there are multiple schools of thoughts on the issue of representational art. Throughout art history we can see how artists and their patrons have navigated this ideological space.

At Alhamra Palace in Granada we see a clear separation in the decorative choices for religious and utilitarian spaces. The Court of the Lions, which is the heart of the regal estate, has a set of white marble lions reiterating the power and glory of the Nasrid Sultans. These life size lions stand anchored in the symbolic paradise, a garden divided into four equal parts with channels of flowing water. The two vocabularies fuse well and convey the confidence of people who commissioned and created it. Fifteenth century Spain was a time of tolerance and exchange when Muslim and Christian artists worked together to create a distinct Andalusian aesthetic, several figurative scenes on leather created during this period can also be seen at the Alhamra Palace.

Throughout centuries we see the question of visual representation being raised again and again to impact the course of art history.  The Safavid Dynasty celebrated their success with a resurgence in art and architecture. Shah Tahmasp I  ( reign: 1524- 1576), elevated this legacy with indulgent opulence; an account of the ceremonial welcome reception extended to the Mughal Prince Humyaun, who took refuge with the Safavids after his defeat by Sher Shah Suri, is documented as a particularly lavish event. Shah Tahmasp I, was a poet and a painter besides being a proud patron of the arts with commitment to the Safavid cultural renaissance. When later during his reign he faced repeated challenges on the battle field and court politics, he found himself helpless under the influence of his orthodox councilors and signed the Edict of Repentance for religious and economic reasons. The Edict of Repentance also gave leverage to the orthodox fraction from Qazvin to introduce policies of sectarian intolerance and censure of cultural practices, this heralded the beginning of the end of the Safavid celebration of the arts.

The innovations introduced at the Safavid karkhanas found continuity at the court of equally enthusiastic and generous patrons like Humayun, Akbar, Jehangir and Shahjahan who for over a century enabled a Mughal revitalization of Miniature Painting. It all began with Humayun’s exposure to Safavid art and architecture that filled him with an innate desire to replicate it in India. He and his wife Hamida Banu Begum, who was also the mother of Akbar, shared a special interest in illustrated books and albums. It’s well recorded in the archives, how their large and precious library accompanied them on a dangerous journey into exile. Humayun during the exile while strategizing his return, also took out the time to learn painting under the most accomplished at the Safavid Court and on his return sought special permission from Shah Tahmasp I, to take back Mir Sayyid Ali and Abd-al Samad with him. These two leading ustads were to lay the foundation of the Mughal Miniature painting and give visual expression in South Asia a new axis and direction.

Humayun’s son Akbar and his descents were connoisseurs of the Arts and outdid the Safavid rulers with a fertile exchange of influences. Akbar employed over a hundred artists in his karkhana and eclecticism was encouraged. Jehangir fascination for flora and fauna added exquisite new albums on the subjects. Shahjehan, in following his passion, created architecture of unforgettable brilliance.

This grand cultural initiative suffered a backlash in Aurangzeb’s reign. This son of Shahjehan not only held orthodox religious views but had taken a vow of austerity. The early paintings from his karkhanas are centered around religious narratives that portrayed him in the company of Sufis in caves and jungles, a striking contrast from his ancestors that preferred the depiction of the pomp of the Mughal Court and action of the hunt and battlefields. As Aurangzeb’s religious conservatism began to increasingly drive his politics, the muhtasibs (moral police) gained power to unleash a fanatical campaign that marginalized other sects and religions. Representational painting fell victim to it while calligraphy and textile arts flourished. Jobless and unappreciated by Aurangzeb, an exodus of artists started migrating to the Hindu Kingdoms. The outcome of this was the birth the Pahari, Kangra , Bacholi schools of painting , to name a few, and heralded yet another important historical chapter. It’s significant to point out here that, Imran Qureshi one of the most important Neo-Miniature artists of our times has long drawn inspiration from Kangra Painting and one cannot help but wonder what his work would been, without the migration of artists that birthed regional painting styles.

This cyclical momentum built up again in the 1980s, some 250 years later when Ziaul Haq’s exclusive patronage to calligraphy and landscape sowed seeds of doubt and exacerbate the conflict between figurative art and religion. Both the official and unofficial voices that promoted an orthodox version of Islam negated Quaid-i- Azam’s call for a tolerant Pakistan with freedom of expression. From 1947 to the 1980s, the cultural canon of Pakistan embraced Modernity that moved beyond moribund ideas. The art eco-system, despite being small was vibrant enough to be represented at global forums. Sadequain won accolades at the Paris Biennale, Ahmed Perwaz found a large audience in the leading galleries of Europe in the 1960s, and Shakir Ali was honored in Czechoslovakia. Pakistan National Council of the Arts actively organized National Art Exhibitions that toured the country. Some such shows travelled abroad with the support of the Foreign Office. Zainul Abedin was invited to establish the Fine Arts Department of Peshawar University. The state run Contemporary Art Gallery in Rawalpindi under Zubeida Agha became a place for the avant garde. Many artists across the country were commissioned to paint portraits of the founder of the nation, they were also in demand to create art for public and commercial spaces like monuments, cinemas, hotels and public offices. Sadequain received many mural commissions, among the early ones were at the old Karachi Airport Terminal and Tarbela Dam. He also became the artist in residence at State Bank of Pakistan. Gulgee as early as 1957 painted the portrait of King Zahir Shah of Afghanistan. Later he was invited to paint the royal family of Iran and then that of Saudi Arabia, Muslim nations of that time celebrated Art and shared the talent from each other’s country. Embassies abroad too showcased art from Pakistan with pride.

This is just a glimpse of the energy released from the fusion between Modernism and talent that led to the production of art across the country before it faced the rupture of the 1980s. The dictator Ziaul Haq with his orthodox interpretation of religion used the Islamization drive to marginalize representational art. All official commissions were reserved for calligraphy and landscape paintings as buildings were directed to only display non-figurative works. This time since the challenge to art came in an independent country and not a monarchy so intellectuals challenged this politicization of religion and censorship of art and culture. It also led to a strong defiant movement against the repressive policies of the State.

As history reveals, the conflict between figurative art and aniconic art has hounded creativity and will continue to do so as long as progressive and orthodox interpretations of Islam exist. As artists and scholars of Art we need to strengthen and defended our position by drawing strength from the lives and works of reformists who safeguarded the right to dialogue and an open-minded synthesis of knowledge like the Akhwan -e- Safa of the tenth Century. These philosophers gave Islam fifty-two treaties and are the unacknowledged founders of the Age of Enlightenment and Modern progress. We are also heirs to Emperor Akbar whose intellectual curiosity led to the first ever translation of Baghwat Geeta and Ramayana into Persian; an extraordinary man who saw value in innovation and explored hybridization as a strength to become the architect of an unsurpassed cultural era. Dr Muhammad Iqbal gave Pakistan an ideological blueprint for a critically dynamic Pakistan, it can be found in his ‘forgotten’ lectures on the Reconstruction of Islamic Thought. They urge a revisiting of the intellectual foundations of Islamic philosophy so the nation can open itself to outside influences without seeing it as a threat to core beliefs.

These titans of thought and action drew strength from their convictions and armed themselves with ilm aur amal to push back retrogressive forces. In today’s complicated and conflict-ridden world, artists, art critics, curators, academics and influencers need to be the force to protect their ideological space and counter challenges to the progressive truth.

Title image: Anwar Saeed, ‘Ku-e-janaan bhi hai ye maqtal bhi..’, graphite on paper, 10 x 14 inches, 1984,