Karachi’s Canvas Gallery’s latest show ‘Siraat-e-Mustaqeem’ (The true path) by Ali Azmat breaks fresh ground on several counts. He steps out of his established role of a figurative painter to experiment with non-figurative visuals and shifts his secondary interest in social issues to dominant mode. Unlike the coded and innuendo filled vocabulary of current protest and remonstrative art, he opts for a direct and literal translation of his ideas.
This extreme literalness, coupled with the topicality and broad range of his subject, ‘The true path’ makes the work easy to comprehend and assimilate even by art-shy audiences. Art shows based on realistic renditions have seldom provoked the curiosity of modern/postmodern art enthusiasts here but a lucid essay in the exhibition catalogue by a celebrated authority on contemporary art is a welcome expression of interest in the growth of this genre.
Other than a censorial stance fine art has rarely, if at all, earned meaningful and laudatory discourse from religious scholars. Again, another write-up in Azmat’s catalogue, by a widely respected, learned and rational Islamic scholar, is an appreciative breakthrough and one hopes more writings will be forthcoming. Such expressions of interest and guidance can go a long way in bridging the divide between art and society at large.
A ritual is a set of actions, performed mainly for their symbolic value and Azmat’s acrylic on canvas paintings pertaining to ‘Siraat-e-Mustaqeem’ critique the emphasis on outward manifestation of religious beliefs instead of their true practice. His motif is the holy book in all its wrapped and enfolded glory. Finely embroidered, embellished in gold finery or stitched from special material the ‘cover’ of the holy book enjoys the status of a protective casing—something that prevents it from defilement. The cover and its sacredness is a familiar phenomenon, yet seldom has it been used as an exhaustive painterly subject.
Equating his paintings with the proportions and horizontal composition of the Pakistani flag Azmat creates a series of designs in a 15 by 9-inch format in which the flag emblems of star and crescent, with slight modifications, are a constant in the entire series. His ingenuity lies in the varied manifestations of the sheath/cover adorning holy book. Like tribal colours and patterns identifying different ethnic groups the holy book is also encased in wraps that instantly define the segment of society they originate from.
Most obvious is the red-and-white keffiyeh scarf covering representing Palestinian liberation sympathisers. The all black cover with the lion image in traditional tughra form with the crescent cradling a bleeding star is another very direct composition. That every bloc has its personal approach is apparent in the cover stitched out of commando uniform material, the crimson and gold ‘juzdaan’ is indicative of the primitive practice of a girl being wedded to the holy book and the red star and crescent on a green wrap imprinted with firearm motifs alludes to practitioners of gun-totting party politics. The sparkling red cover bordered with gold filigree speaks of the holy book’s emblematic status in the bridal dowry.
Other than straight renderings, Azmat also inverts symbols and ciphers to assert his premise. The floral form is deployed to appear as funeral flowers in a wreath of roses while a spray of red florets suggest blood spurts and stains. Rosary beads roll out as mini grenades and a ‘mute’ computer icon crossed with a pair of bullets substitutes the customary star in a crescent.
Similarly, prickly cacti clinging to the ghilaaf (cover) and hands in transparent plastic gloves are diverse indications of ‘special handling’ accorded to the holy book.
In times of moral and spiritual bankruptcy, emphasis on rite, ritual and ceremony increases. These elaborate coverlets are insightful disclosures of human deception and hypocrisy—the state of pretending to have virtues, moral or religious beliefs, principles, etc., that one does not have, let alone practice. Without even revealing the actual book the artist manages to expose attitudes of the so called believers from different sections of society. Expressing devotion and adoration by handling the holy book with utmost reverence and exalting it with decorative coverings is a charade as the actual message of piety has not filtered into the life and conduct of the so called devotee.
Mainly a concept dominated application, this series as a painterly exercise is far less challenging (technically) than the artists usual repertoire of figurative compositions. Originally painting several series devoted to melancholy young women, followed by the ‘Moorat’ series exploring the troubled existence of eunuchs and the recent portrayal of innocence and purity in images of children, Azmat’s sensitivity to the human condition is maturing by degrees and his critical stance in ‘The true path’ is a visible manifestation of his desire to focus on socially conscious art relevant to his milieu.
Dear visitor, the comments section is undergoing an overhaul and will return soon.