LAHORE: A two-day (April 19-20) exhibition of artworks by renowned and emerging artists opened at Standard Chartered Bank, MM Alam Road, on Saturday.

The basic objective of the event is Standard Chartered Bank’s global initiative ‘Seeing is Believing’.

Through this project the bank has been working to eliminate avoidable blindness since 2003. The aim of the exhibition is not only to provide customers with a memorable experience of contributing towards the celebration of Pakistani art but also to bring people together to a noble cause.

Commenting on the show, curator Asad Faruki, who is currently head of Visual Arts Department at the Imperial University and a former associate professor of National College of Arts, said: “This is for the first time that I have converted a bank into an art gallery which is a great challenge for me.”

“I wanted to tell the story of Pakistani art in a context that was referential. To see the masters and the emerging artists represent their version of what they see and what they believe is irrespective of the fluidity of time. Within this space time goes forward, backward and also standstill when the observer allows,” says Faruki in his curator’s statement.

Mr Faruki said 10 per cent of proceeds of every sold painting in the show would go to Layton Rahmatulalh Benevolent Trust (LRBT). The bank would match the amount raised for ‘Seeing is Believing’ through this event.

Standard Chartered Bank’s aim is to raise $100 million by 2020 and reach 50 million people worldwide. Since 2003 with the collaboration of bank’s NGO partners such as Sight Savers International and LRBT the bank has been able to reach 11 million people, helping to bring essential and quality eye care to some of the poorest communities.

The artists had put on display paintings, sculpture, ceramics and drawings. The prominent pieces were of Ana Molka Ahmed, Akram Dost, Bashir Mirza, Dabir Ahmed, Jamil Naqash, Shakir Ali, Sadequain and Askari Mian Irani.