14 August 2004	Saturday	27 Jamadi-us-Saani 1425

ISLAMABAD, Aug 13: It was a nostalgic retrospection as far as Anna Molka Ahmad was concerned but it yielded good result in that the minister for privatization, Mr Hafeez Shaikh, promised on Thursday to motivate the moneyed class in building art institutions.

The minister said he had noticed that museums, galleries and art institutions were the result of philanthropic endowments by the rich class. To that end he promised to use his influence in ensuring that this did happen in Pakistan.

Mr Shaikh made this observation in the context of acquiring all the art treasures of Prof Anna Molka Ahmed so that they were kept at one place at the under-construction National Art Gallery building.

He said he did not know the great abstractionist painter and pioneering art educationist personally but he had read about her from what has been narrated at the retrospective event.

Earlier, PNCA director-general Changez Sultan in his opening remarks had mentioned the challenges in rescuing and preserving all the paintings that had been collected from vaults and dungeons.

Prof Molka's daughter Tahira Ayaz recalled the daily life chores of her mother. Her day began at seven in the morning and she continued to work till late night while devoting some of her time to tender the siblings.

Perhaps she was not able to give her very long time but it was enough that she was a caring person, and would stitch new clothes for Eid and other festive occasions.

She would wear her trade mark while tending the garden, cutting hedges in new and artistic pattern, and went on painting and gardening till the very last time until she was ordered by the doctors to stop because it was straining her health badly. The Anna Molka took to writing poetry.

She said with the endless activity she was busy in stabilizing art education in the country and did not find time to have an exhibition of her own art. Prof Molka's friend Prof Jamila Zaidi also spoke about her active life the late artist spent in giving impetus to art education.

She said there were only five or six Muslim students in the art department at the time of independence, and Anna Molka Ahmed went from one college to another seeking students for the arts department and thus was able to introduce art courses in the Punjab University.

Ms Zaidi said her friend offered regular prayers and fasted during Ramazan. Once after she had accepted Islam she accepted all its tenets and practiced them. National Art Gallery curator Musarrat Nahid Imam conducted the proceedings and said Prof Anna Molka Ahmed was dynamic and undeterred but her heart was as soft as rose petal.