‘Artists spokespersons for society’

Islamabad: Artists are the spokespersons for the society and always speak and highlights the social issues through their works, said First Lady Samina Alvi during her visit of the painting exhibition of young artist Rehmat Zafar at the National Art Gallery.

She appreciated the art works and said that this young mind has touched very important but ignored health issue especially in our society.

"Taking care of our mental health is more important as only mentally healthy persons can make the society beautiful and living worthy, she added. Due to technological progress the humanity is suffering from many complex mental issues these days which requires more psychological consultations.

It is the need of the time to pay more attention towards this issue," she said. The first lady emphasised on the work and welfare of the artist in the entire country. Rehmat Zafar a young Pakistani Swiss artist grown up in Pakistan, Egypt and Switzerland is currently undertaking her Bachelor in Fine Arts at Steinhardt School of Culture, Education and Human Development at New York University.

She is a multi-disciplinary artist who primarily employs illustration, painting, and poetry in her works. Her first show, “Distortion” was centered around the concept of manipulation in its various forms.

As an artist, she is interested in the enquiry and interaction of emotional and physical topographies. Her exhibition under the title of “Now to Nowhere” attempts to explore the multifaceted experience of dis-association, the action of separation or the state of being disconnected.

In psychology, dissociation is the breakdown of Gestalt, the process by

which whole elements of the self-separate from an individual’s mainstream consciousness.