June 5, 2004

Colour is almost always thought of more subjectively than other pictorial elements. Anatomy, perspective and design may be carefully studied but when it comes to colour, most artists prefer to loose themselves in an intuitive experience. A recent exhibition of paintings by Shahbaz Malik at Chawkandi Art came across primarily as an arrangement of abstract forms and a very free-wheeling indulgence in colour. He orchestrates his paintings like a collagist, piecing together solid blocks of colour, moving them about and reshaping them until a satisfying composition emerges.

In abstract art, flat unshaded hues heighten a painting’s chromatic impact as their obvious plainness pushes them forward while the busy areas recede in the background. However, Shahbaz Malik works on a formula of equal strength. His colour palette is overheated and his worked areas are overcrowded. High voltage chromatics surround or support his heavily embellished surfaces. In this clash of surface colour and design structure, the special challenge then lies in trying to create order out of visual clutter and chaos. His work is jarring if seen in totality. On a piecemeal basis, however, his deconstruction of traditional textile motifs into abstraction is inventive.

If the artist’s earlier work reminded one of a bull in a china shop, the present series shows him taking it by the horns. The turbulence of former years is still there but small touches of fine lines, rhythmic marks, uneven borders and soft block patterns invoke the poet in him. Paintings carrying dark monsoon clouds against a random patchwork of multi-coloured prints, emit a distinct atmosphere. Shadowy marks, wiggles and accents simulate drizzling raindrops which lighten the mood of his otherwise charged pieces.

This is a new expression in his tried and tested repertoire of abstraction. But even though it is refreshing it still needs to be developed further to be meaningful. Overtly decorative, Shahbaz Malik’s work has always carried a figurative subtext through which he gives veiled comment on gender issues, child abuse, feudal tyranny and poverty.

This figurative presence was woven through his designs and patterns but his attempts were not always successful. Mercifully, most of his current work is free from this confusion but he still needs to work on integrating his forms and colours. The dictum of “less is more” might help to defuse the tension in his compositions and bring them to a more acceptable level.

Borrowing colour and graphics from the ordinary brightly-coloured cheent (chintz) prints worn by village women enables Malik to draw his audience into the rural milieu. By painting primitive handblocks he reinforces the artist-artisan interaction and highlights the art-craft merger. Working in his home town in the southern Punjab has allowed him greater opportunity to explore textile art from close quarters.

Shahbaz Malik graduated from NCA in 1986 and has since exhibited considerably. With almost ten solo shows to his credit, largely in Lahore and Islamabad, he has begun displaying in Karachi also. This is his second one-man show here and the present display viewed collectively is still loud and garish. Insertion of softer pieces could make the viewing experience more pleasant.