Islamabad
Marking the close of a retreat held in the picturesque surroundings of Swat—an area now visibly scarred by the impact of climate change—an exhibition of products that inspire critical thinking and have the potential to elicit actions to mitigate the effects of climate change, opened at Gallery 6 here on Friday.
The exhibition, which features paintings, photographs, a documentary, and short visual stories by a dozen art practitioners, was inaugurated by minister for law and climate change Zahid Hamid, whose ministry, together with Gallery 6 Islamabad and East-West Centre Association, Islamabad Chapter, were the three collaborators of the joint venture.
Titled ‘Climate Change and Art – A Practitioners Retreat,’ the purpose of the initiative was to facilitate development of products, which would motivate stakeholders to learn about and explore the factors leading to climate change and its resultant negative impacts.
The retreat was held in the last week of August 2016 in Swat, where massive deforestation and unsustainable development are contributing to warming, glacial-melt, and massive flashfloods leading to widespread destruction of housing and agricultural lands. The artists and photographers not only documented disaster-prone areas like riverside settlements which had been washed away by floods, degraded land, near-total absence of birds and wildlife, deforestation, and many other subjects related to climate change, but also captured the beautiful landscapes that depict biodiversity and natural environmental serenity.
The retreat had 12 participants, who were lodged at PTDC Miandam, and who also travelled to Bahrain, Madyan and Kalam, practicing under ideal weather conditions. The participants included 6 painters, 3 photographers, a sculptor, a film maker, and a writer. Selected participants had origins from various areas of Pakistan; three came from Lahore (Abid Khan, Ahsan Jawaid, Ali Ijaz), two from Chakwal (Raja Najmul Hasan and Zainul Abedin) and one each from Rawalpindi (Saram Maqbool), Gilgit-Baltistan (Ayub Wali), Hangu (Shaheer Ahmad), Shahdadpur (Irfan Gul Dahri), Quetta (SM Khayyam), Malakand (Junaid Baber) and Karachi (Ayesha Akif).
The exhibition also features a few short visual stories on factors affecting climate change, and the resultant harm inflicted on the environment. These stories were produced by interviewing local people, who talked about massive deforestation, changing pattern of snowfall, effects on growing of fruits (especially apples), and increasing floods and their devastating effects on housing areas and agricultural lands, etc. A documentary on the entire retreat was also produced. Several staff members of the Ministry of Climate Change accompanied the participants for managerial support, while the ministry’s secretary also visited the group, albeit briefly.
Allowing for personal inabilities to join the Swat group, three painters and a sculptor were also invited to be part of the thematic activity as they undertook thought-provoking works related to climate change in their studios. Their artworks have tremendous potential to initiate and enhance the dialogue on the subject.
The products of the art retreat are simply stunning, as the participants have put their hearts and souls in their creative instincts. Some of these are worth exhibiting internationally and could become iconic artworks on the subject of climate change.
Irfan Gul’s painting ‘A Little More,’ Sadaf Naeem’s ‘Fantasy Garden’ and Sana Arjumand’s ‘Scape Within’ are spell-binding. The two youngest participants have proven their worth for inclusion in the retreat. Ahsan Jawaid’s collage work titled ‘Hymns of Freedom’ and SM Khayyam’s skills of capturing the light with palette knife on canvas are amazing. Zainul Abedin’s ‘Lets drive to the green,’ Raja Najmul Hassan’s ‘Nostalgia’ and Abid Khan’s scenes of Kalam and Miandam are impressive works.
The camera lenses of Saram Maqbool, Shaheer Ahmad Khan Bangash and Ayesha Akif have captured both the beauty of Swat as well as the destruction caused by the effects of climate change. We see these in ‘Receding Glaciers,’ ‘Ravages of Flood,’ ‘Brown Development Replacing Green,’ ‘Creeping Concrete,’ etc. Even Syed Abu Ahmad Akif, federal secretary for climate change, has contributed photographs with engrossing titles.
Sculptors Ayub Wali and Abbas Shah have worked on two different mediums. Ayub’s brass work of leaves titled ‘Do not make us museum items’ and Shah’s ‘Spirit of the trees’ made from dead wood, are also fabulous in their concept and process. Ali Ijaz, the filmmaker, has captured moments of the retreat in a brief but captivating movie. He has also interviewed local people narrating stories about the effects of climate change in Swat that will be circulated through Facebook to spread awareness about the subject.
Dr. Arjumand Faisel, who was the group leader, has made a digital design ‘Save Our Future – Plant Trees’ for posters, t-shirts, mugs, etc., which is displayed in a poster form. Inspiration for this poster came from squirrels that were in abundance at Miandam and the children who were staying at the PTDC hotel. Being the brain being the initiative, Dr. Arjumand also shoulder the responsibility of selecting the participants, bringing them on board, briefing them about climate change, guiding them in the field, planning and curating the show, and designing the catalogue and other materials for the exhibition.
Referring to the concept governing the initiative, Dr. Arjumand said, “Art for social change is a movement that is increasingly being used to address challenging social issues. While some are using traditional forms such as visual, literary, or performing arts to create awareness or advocate the need for change, others are exploring new forms of “social practice” that engage communities in an interactive exchange. Socially engaged art can provide a platform for reflection, creating demands for change and collaboration. It can reach out to a large audience.”
Climate change is now universally acknowledged as a threat to human wellbeing, future development, and security. Its crosscutting, multi-dimensional and multisectoral nature necessitates a response that is not only integrated for effective scientific and technological planning, but is also communicated to a wider audience through all available means.
Pakistan is considered to be one of the top-ten most vulnerable countries with respect to climate change, the effects of which are being experienced by its people in different forms like extremes of temperatures, flashfloods, droughts, land degradation, climate migration, and water stresses. The situation requires action in multiple spheres and by numerous stakeholders to mitigate the effects. Having seen the exhibits, it can easily be said that a group of artists, led by the enterprising Dr. Arjumand Faisel, has done its bit in inviting attention to an issue that warrants an immediate response—from the highest levels of governance down to the level of individual action.
The exhibition will continue on October 8 and 9 from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Gallery 6, Al-Abraaj Center, 4th building behind Shaheen Chemist, Super Market, F-6. The people of Islamabad and Rawalpindi must rush to see the exhibition, which involved immense hard work and meticulous planning.
