By Our correspondent
Gallery6 has made it a tradition to present the works of artists who have never or rarely exhibited in Islamabad. Continuing the trend, the gallery has put up an exhibition of paintings by Omar Farid, who has been painting for decades but has only exhibited during the inaugural show of the National Art Gallery in 2007. The exhibition will open today (Saturday).
It is more than 40 years now that Omar realised his painting talents and experienced that painting is a medium for both introspection and expression. He is a dream chaser who enjoys creating mind-tapping images. His strength lies not only in the thought process behind his pieces but their masterly execution through intricate and powerful compositions.
Pointing towards the depth of composition of Omar’s work, leading art writer Marjorie Husain said, “One must study each piece at length to discover the profusion of methods employed including pointillism, geometric abstraction, miniscule multiple lines, shapes and forms, circles and squiggles. The inks on paper are densely patterned with sensual shapes. In some of the artworks, Omar dramatically increases the scale of the work surface without losing the linear interest that he so skillfully employs. In all his work, there is enormous activity and detail, whether it is the exquisitely delineated design of black and white images such as ‘Belladonna’ worked in ink on paper; or the psychedelic colours of ink and acrylic pieces such as ‘Chrysalid: Mantissa.’ In these images, the strange forms are connected in a suggestion of continuous and unexpected change, perhaps the experience of life itself.”
Currently, Omar’s paintings are characterised by strong colourfulness, richness of details, and immensely creative imagination. They are bright, catchy and lively; he has reached this colourful stage through a long journey. In his previous exhibitions, he has mostly been showing pen and ink works deftly drawn in both miniature and medium size frames, displaying black and white images.
Mohammad Jami, an art critic commenting on his work, said: “What instantly captivates a viewer is his highly peculiar choice of subjects and the elements, objects and figures that suffuse each of his paintings.”
Shamim Akhtar, another art critic, describing the delicateness of Omar’s work stated, “His works, although rendered on medium and large size paper boards, have been worked with the subtleness of a miniature painting. His pen and ink work is done in intricately and elaborately drawn lines. Omar’s palette speaks about his happening within.”
As a young artist, Omar Farid was guided by renowned art teachers and artists like Ali Imam, Ahmed Parvez, Nasir Shamsi and Bashir Mirza. These distinguished men allowed Omar to sit on their discussions at the Indus Gallery, which he valued a lot. One day, Ahmed Parvez told Omar: “What you are doing is too mature for your age, you will burn out.” Today, at the age of 59, Omar is a thin, wiry figure with all white hair and bespectacled pencil-thin eyes, yet his imagination and creations are flourishing and enriching the art world in Pakistan, and there is no sign of burning out.
Arjumand Faisel, the curator of Gallery6, said: “There are many good things about Omar Farid’s work that have been acclaimed by leading artists and art critics, but one thing that stands out most significantly is that he is not painting for market demands but producing the finest paintings of true art that are neither repetitive nor decorative — each piece is a marvel of creative intelligence.”
Omar himself says that his paintings are meant for those who have the developed an eye for art and not for those who merely look at paintings and walk away. He insists: “You have to see my works in order to appreciate and introspect, not just look at them,” and this is very true as each of his painting demands a bit of perceptive seeing from true art lovers.
Those who love art must visit the exhibition, which will continue till October 24 at House no. 624, Street 44, G-9/1, daily from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., including Sundays.