PESHAWAR: Noted painter, sculptor and calligrapher Arbab Mohammad Sardar passed away after protracted illness here on Saturday at his Arabab Landi home. He was 71.

He was buried in Arbapano graveyard the same day. Large number of notables, elders of the area, family members and fans attended his funeral prayers. He left behind a widow as he had no children. He also left behind a private art gallery and a furnished studio, a precious treasure trove.

Arbab Sardar had received accolades of appreciation from art lovers at his exhibitions in Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Italy, China, UK, Germany and Japan. His subjects and themes mostly portrayed village life, landscapes, different aspects of Pakhtun culture and traditions, giving a kaleidoscopic impression of life in general across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

According to his family sources and friends, Arbab Sardar wanted his art gallery stacked with his invaluable art pieces be preserved by culture department for art lovers after his name. His private art gallery has been visited by many local and foreign dignitaries and noted personalities. Till recently it served as a source of inspiration for young artists.

The art gallery, located at Landi Arbab, a populous village 2km west of Peshawar, would strike every visitor with wonder. More than 400 marvellous art pieces -- sketched, drawn, painted, relieved and sculptured -- in various mediums and colours gave one the idea of entering a dreamland.

Starting with pencil sketching Sardar developed a taste for visual art at the tender age of 10. He participated in seven solo and 20 group exhibitions in Pakistan and abroad.

Being a recipient of the coveted President’s Award of Pride of Performance, the down to earth artist had never been involved in commercial artwork. “Going commercial is not necessarily a bad idea but sometimes it robs one’s art of its true spirit,” he once had told this scribe.

Behind his dynamic creativity one could easily see his plucky experimentations rooted in his desire to document eye-catching subjects. Arbab Sardar’s newly adopted knife paintings with deep and dabbed strokes were expressive of his mental involvement with mature motifs.

He used knife palette to depict the blossomy effects focusing on certain motifs by juxtaposing or contrasting processes to intensify and enhance the desired impact.

Arbab Sardar’s interests were varied and so were his subjects. One could see traditional as well as a contemporary touch in his paintings as he had not limited himself to any particular school of thought. Laden with strong cultural motifs, like the famous Khattak dance showing a perfect rhythmical composition, or marvellous landscapes of the heart-breaking valleys, his canvases reflected his inclination towards portraying an impression of a peaceful environment that needed to be felt and experienced.

Prof Dawar Khan Daud told this scribe that Arbab Sardar was a humble soul in addition to a great artist. He said that he had recently written a booklet in Pashto showcasing Arbab Sardar’s life and art pieces.

Arbab Sardar had studied decorative art and techniques of modelling and mouldings in stones and marble from Italy. His exquisite murals depicting contours of a typical Pakhtun tribesman had reinforced his nostalgic paranoia of eroding golden traditions that he had reckoned, if preserved, could help maintain peace and harmony in our society. Behind Sardar’s dynamic creativity one could easily see his plucky experimentations rooted in his desire to document eye-catching subjects.

Published in Dawn, September 25th, 2016