Islamabad
Portraying the works of 55 artists, a seven-day national photographic exhibition on the theme ‘My World in Monochrome’ was inaugurated at Lok Virsa.
Renowned Paediatrician and JICA Alumni Association of Pakistan President Professor Khawaja Ahmed Abbas and Lok Virsa Executive Director Dr. Fouzia Saeed were theguests of honour at the inauguration ceremony.
Organised by the Photographic Art Society of Pakistan, the exhibition beautifully highlights the diverse aspects of life in black-n-white, sepia, silhouettes and shadows. Shooting images in shades of grey and in single colour is a specialised art form. Real life is in colour, however, the shades of grey bring out the hidden art.
The exhibition includes the award-winning images by Tahsin Shah (Innocence Lost), Ghalib Hasnain (Class of Tharparkar), Abdul Sattar Khokhar (Tricolour Smoke), Minhaj Qazi (Dreams), Aamir Majeed Sheikh (Farmer at Work), Dr. Iftikhar Ahmed (Rodeo Man), Farah Imran Shams (Ballerinas), Ammara Nawaz Khan (Reshmi Rahain), Haroon Lali (A Village Kid), Sajjad Bokhari (Lonely Eagle) and Nadia Abbasi (Sochan), among others. Visitors greatly appreciated the work of these artists.
Renowned Photographer Professor Razaq Vance made a presentation on the 'Power of a Picture' which effectively enlightened the audience on the subject. His presentation mentioned how the views of the world changed with the image of a dead Syrian baby. He portrayed the art as a means of bringing about social change, in highlighting social issues and potential benefits to humanity.
Another presentation was made by a senior civil service office Abdul Sattar Khokhar on 'How to Shoot a Winner Image?' The presentation mentioned the ingredients of an award-winning image and how to bring creativity, technique and technology together into the final product. The presentation adequately covered the 12 elements which are the hallmark of a picture which stands out and wins awards.
Lok Virsa Executive Director Dr. Fouzia Saeed appreciated the efforts of the Photographic Art Society of Pakistan in promotion of the art of photography and in portraying the work of talented artists. She assured the Society of continued support from Lok Virsa in future ventures.
JICA Alumni Association of Pakistan President Professor K A Abbasexpressed his appreciation of the quality of work produced by the artists. He stated that photography being a very powerful art form, should be used to portray the true colours and beautify of the Pakistani culture to the world.
Photographic Art Society of Pakistan President Sami-ur-Rehman Khan expressed his gratitude to Lok Virsa and JICA Alumni Association for patronising the event. While sharing his thoughts, he highlighted the activities of the Society. He lauded the efforts of the Islamabad based members of the PASP. Talking about future plans, he expressed his resolve to publish two books and organise two exhibitions annually.