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    Art Review: The Kind of Nature at Canvas Gallery

    Written by: Nimra Khan
    Posted on: July 21, 2023 | | 中文

    Substance by Muzammil Khan

    Every artist takes inspiration from their surroundings and this influence is inevitable, whether it is explicit or implicit. It is next to impossible to detach oneself from everyday lived experiences when creating something as subjective as art, where context plays an important role in every aspect of the work. A recent group show at Canvas Gallery, The Kind of Nature, brings together seven artists: Niamat Nigar, M. Muzammil Khan, Haider Ali Naqvi, Faheem Abbas, Yaseen Khan, Hamid Ali Hanbhi and Fawad Jafri. Their work responds to or is a product of their physical environment and its intersection with culture and politics, in a more direct and conscious capacity. “The show highlights each artist’s unique response to the environment of today, be it natural or man-made, constructed or demolished, ancient or new.”

    Many of the artists employ material and process to reflect the environment. Faheem Abbas’s sculptural forms resemble excavated artifacts, yet fashioned with concrete, they become relics of our urban situation that is swiftly conquering the natural world. Meant to represent our present for an imagined future, these forms offer suggestions for our deities, the values that we may immortalize for future generations to find and learn about our way of life.

    (L to R) No. 381 by Faheem Abbas and Polygonal Triangle I by Fawad Jafri

    Materiality and process is also an important concern for Niamat Nigar. He combines tapestry, embroidery and painting in a sort of abstract mixed media collage that forge a relation between human nature and its surroundings. “My inquiry is rooted in history, particularly my own experience of digging in the coal mines of Baluchistan,” says Nigar in his statement. The play of material and texture in these works engages the tactile senses, adding depth in layers, while the interaction of paint, embroidery and cutting records different forms of human actions, both creative and destructive, healing and violent. The current series layers materials sourced from the city of Karachi, its forms, lines and rough texture thus becoming an apt representation of the metropolis.

    Stack and Pile by Niamat Nigar

    Materials sourced from the environment also become a part of Haider Ali Naqvi’s work, but in a rather unexpected way. Here the material also becomes the process, as the artist records the impact of natural forces like the sea water and sunlight on manmade structures in coastal areas, such as Karachi. “The House Between Tides” series presents 5 drawings of a beachfront hut, each submerged in sea water from the Arabian Sea for varying amounts of time, resulting in drawings with varying degrees of erosion. It speaks of the tussle between man and nature, where the built environment is constantly being slowly and subtly reclaimed by nature.

    The House Between Tides II by Haider Ali Naqvi

    M. Muzammil Khan’s work focuses on a built environment, but of the personal kind, with a political undertone. Notions of memory are explored as the artist’s childhood home is reconstructed in paint, once forcefully demolished to make way for the Lyari Expressway. The underlying emotions are encapsulated in a physical artifact that the artist fixates upon, which stands as a crumbling monument to lives lived within its walls. The image is constructed in layers, adding further depth to its cavernous openings, a dark representation of an uncertain future within the remnants of a destructed past.

    3:15 pm by Hamid Ali Hanbhi

    Yaseen Khan’s environmental landscape is constructed and viewed through a cultural lens. “Growing up in both Sindh and Khyber PakhtunKhwah (KPK) and now living in Punjab, I have been able to absorb the vast cultural landscapes they have to offer,” says Khan. He expresses this by incorporating Chamak Patti used for the art of truck decoration into his work as a medium, which is part of his personal experience working as a mechanic and truck decorator from a young age. The result is an amalgamation between nature and synthetic materials, the shiny foil reflecting rainbow shades as it catches the light, interspersed with images of trees and patterns of flat color.

    Jacaranda Mimosilfolia by Yaseen Khan

    The hybrid between natural and built environment in each artist’s work reflects our current situation, caught between two worlds as man conquers the natural world and spreads its concrete empire further and wider. It is an opportunity to reflect on the consequences of this greed, and the ways in which the devastation adversely affects not just the environment, but humanity itself.


    As the new year begins, let us also start anew. I’m delighted to extend, on behalf of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and in my own name, new year’s greeting and sincere wishes to YOULIN magazine’s staff and readers.

    Only in hard times can courage and perseverance be manifested. Only with courage can we live to the fullest. 2020 was an extraordinary year. Confronted by the COVID-19 pandemic, China and Pakistan supported each other and took on the challenge in solidarity. The ironclad China-Pakistan friendship grew stronger as time went by. The China Pakistan Economic Corridor projects advanced steadily in difficult times, become a standard-bearer project of the Belt and Road Initiative in balancing pandemic prevention and project achievement. The handling capacity of the Gwadar Port has continued to rise and Afghanistan transit trade through the port has officially been launched. The Karakoram Highway Phase II upgrade project is fully open to traffic. The Lahore Orange Line project has been put into operation. The construction of Matiari-Lahore HVDC project was fully completed. A batch of green and clean energy projects, such as the Kohala and Azad Pattan hydropower plants have been substantially promoted. Development agreement for the Rashakai SEZ has been signed. The China-Pakistan Community of Shared Future has become closer and closer.

    Reviewing the past and looking to the future, we are confident to write a brilliant new chapter. The year 2021 is the 100th birthday of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Pakistan. The 100-year journey of CPC surges forward with great momentum and China-Pakistan relationship has flourished in the past 70 years. Standing at a new historic point, China is willing to work together with Pakistan to further implement the consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, connect the CPEC cooperation with the vision of the “Naya Pakistan”, promote the long-term development of the China-Pakistan All-weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership with love, dedication and commitment. Mohammad Ali Jinnah, the founding father of Pakistan said, “We are going through fire. The sunshine has yet to come.” Yes, Pakistan’s best days are ahead, China will stand with Pakistan firmly all the way.

    YOULIN magazine is dedicated to promoting cultural exchanges between China and Pakistan and is a window for Pakistani friends to learn about China, especially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. It is hoped that with the joint efforts of China and Pakistan, YOULIN can listen more to the voices of readers in China and Pakistan, better play its role as a bridge to promote more effectively people-to-people bond.

    Last but not least, I would like to wish all the staff and readers of YOULIN a warm and prosper year in 2021.

    Nong Rong Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of
    The People’s Republic of China to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan
    January 2021