At Grandeur, a pleasant escape from modern art

Karachi has more than its due share of art exhibitions, the city having witnessed over the years a proliferation of art galleries which seem to have assumed a commercial character. 

However, not all the exhibitions at these galleries are all that captivating and winsome. In fact, the owners of most of them are just obsessed with modern art and the works are mostly brain teasers, leaving more to the imagination of the viewer rather than plain visual art. One has to guess and often run away with his imagination to figure out as to what the work is all about. Often one sees concentric circles and it turns out that they are supposed to be women, each concentric circle representing a woman. There are things which are even more absurd and it all passes off for art.

One such rare exhibition is currently running at the Grandeur Art Gallery in Defence.

It is an exercise in realism and most of the works are a treat to watch. Forty-three works by 11 artists adorn the walls of the gallery. Some of them stand out for their exceptional nature. 

There are three works by Sumaiya Majeed, a study of women. The works show women in different poses amid various scenes and scenarios. The slender female forms painted by Sumaiya are a pleasure to watch. What is most admirable about these works is the blending of colours which makes the paintings all the more profound. Sumaiya is a lyrical colourist, indeed.

Then there are four works by Akbar Khan, women again. They show rural women fetching water with pitchers balanced on their heads. The perfect anatomy of these women is so well depicted. Of these four works, one really stands out. 

It shows a woman carrying a pitcher on her head and heading through the woods. The tree-lined woods and their scenery carries something absolutely surreal and magical about it, absolutely dream-like. 

This combined with the alluring colour scheme makes the work absolutely admirable.

Another striking work is by Haya Ameer Khan. It shows a beautiful architecture of a church and a small girl standing and admiring it as if in homage.

In fact, the exhibits placed at the gallery are really captivating indeed.

The artists part of the 11-person group show are Akbar Khan, Anum Eqbal, Sumaiya Majeed, Tayyaba Asif, Maya Khan, Hafsa Binte Aqeel, Vamiir, Haya Ameer, Salman Ahmed, Ubaid-ur-Rehman and Razia Sehar.   The exhibition, which is a must-see for all lovers of genuine art, runs up until April 8.