Arjumand Painting Award launched in style

Islamabad
Instituted with a conviction to preserve interest in the classical art form of painting, which is slowly but surely dwindling due to the increasing use of computers and other digital technologies in art, the prestigious Arjumand Painting Award 2015 was launched in style at a ceremony held at the gallery6 rooftop.
Aftab Tapal, a Karachi-based art collector known for his incalculable contributions for art promotion, was the chief guest at the launch of the first-ever art award instituted by any private gallery in Pakistan. He was flanked on the stage by the curator of gallery6 Dr. Arjumand Faisel, and members of the distinguished jury that ascertained the eligibility, process, and criteria of judgement. The panel of judges comprised Aasim Akhtar, Akram Dost, Meher Afroz, R M Naeem, and Sana Arjumand.
Depicting a paper pasted on a wall, Kiran Saleem’s untitled painting in super realism, won the first position. She was awarded a cash prize of Rs200,000 and a shield. The artist, who did her Bachelors in Fine Arts from Government College University, Faisalabad, in 2009, is currently teaching at the National College of Arts, Lahore, where she also did her Masters from. “Her painting was technically very strong. It met all requirements in terms of concept, creativity, execution and composition,” Meher Afroze, the senior-most member of the jury stated.
Talking exclusively to this scribe, Kiran said, “My work revolves around images that offer an altered perception of the real. The idea is to stimulate the minds of the viewers and give them a new way of looking at images that are often overlooked. My intention is to explore the fine lines between illusion, delusion, and hallucination. My work talks about what contemporary art actually is. I take images which have been produced hundreds of years ago and have been seen thousands of times, but are still contemporary because they have been painted in a highly unusual manner,” she said. Even in her painting that won the prize, Kiran has used Monet’s famous painting titled ‘Water Lillies.’
Saba Zahid’s painting titled ‘While she looked away’ was chosen for the second prize (Rs150,000 and a shield). The painting demonstrates the painterly skills of the artist, who did her Bachelors in Fine Arts from NCA in 2014. The third prize was bagged by Syed Zainul Abedin, whose ‘Rural-in-Vision’ landscape stood out for its elegant brushwork. The artist did his Bachelors in Fine Arts from Beaconhouse National University, Lahore, in 2011.
Merit awards were presented to Amna Manzoor (a graduate of NCA, Lahore) for an outstanding work titled ‘Deepening sense of self,’ Abid Aslam (a graduate of Hunerkada) for a mix media painting titled ‘I am not a warrior,’ and Zakir Baloch (a graduate of University of Balochistan) for an untitled realistic painting.
Earlier on, Dr. Arjumand shared the story of the evolution of the award. Reminiscing memories of his student life, he shared that while he virtually grew up with Pakistani art, it was not until 2008, when he took an exhibition titled ‘Unseen Visions’ to the US, that he realized how powerful Pakistani artists’ work was in comparison to what is being created in the West. The thought was reinforced when he got a chance to attend the Archibald, Wynne and Sulman Prizes Exhibition in Sydney. “These awards created the desire that Pakistan should also have a regular prestigious painting award. In the absence of patronage by the government, gallery 6 decided to institute the Arjumand Painting Award in order to fill the void to regularly recognize outstanding painters,” he stated amidst applause.
Dr. Arjumand said, the purpose of the award is to emphasize the importance of classical painting among emerging and recently established artists. Reflecting on the three-step judgement process, he shared that 81 eligible works of art were entertained, and of these, 54 have been displayed. “Each judged scored the paintings independently without interacting with other members, hence avoiding peer influence while upholding transparency,” he said.
Meher Afroze explained how heart-breaking it was to select only three winners when the response was so overwhelming, and the quality of work so remarkable. She termed the award a timely measure that deserves to be replicated by other art institutions. “Our artists are doing tremendous work. Remember that an artist does not follow; he creates. Do not follow the West; create your own path and develop your own identity for nations that have progressed are the ones who believe in themselves,” she advised.
Aftab Tapal expressed how impressed he was by the quality of the artwork and the assessment process. The ceremony concluded with Dr. Arjumand presenting to the chief guest, an original copy of the famous ‘Life’ magazine of USA that printed a portrait of Quaid-e-Azam on its cover page in the January 5, 1948 issue. Paintings were presented to all judges for contributing their time and effort to the initiative.
Sharing his views in a well-designed catalogue commemorating the award, the former principal of Karachi’s Central Institute of Arts and Crafts Rashid Arshed has described the award as a notable contribution to the development of art in Pakistan. “The Arjumand Painting Award is a monumental undertaking which will bring new talent to limelight. The need for such an award is particularly important in the absence of any such programme by government institutions set up to promote art,” he rightly states.
Even though Sunday was marked by frequent downpours that created a mess of the outdoor arrangements, the organisers remained undeterred in their resolve to host a seamless event. And seamless it was! Even nature remained kind throughout the proceedings, with the Islamabad skyline and the cool breeze providing an ideal setting for the prestigious award ceremony.