ISLAMABAD: As a painter for the past thirty years, he has focused his creative energies on his two principal series; the Divided Self and the Himalayan Odyssey.

Embodying a unique vision, landscape and figurative artist Raja Changez Sultan brings a continuation of both series. His latest work is called the Wood Nymphs, in his fresh collection, which went on display on Thursday.

Tanzara gallery opened its doors to small and large scale paintings that grabbed the attention of art lovers as soon as they entered the space.

“His work stands apart from his contemporaries by virtue of the painting techniques that he employs. Aiming for the minimal, his canvasses are built up with thin layers of oil paint and the result is a translucent light that permeates all around. The end product is a captivating, mystical experience, wherein one sees a fusion of color, dissolving spaces, dismantling and unveiling of figures and forms with an air of timelessness about them,” said the gallery’s owner and curator of the show, Noshi Qadir, on the opening day.

Raja Changez Sultan has returned here after two years, he previously exhibited in Tanzara in 2012.

Some of his paintings have taken him a day to complete, others four to five days.

The Himalayan Odyssey is a portrayal of towering snow-capped peaks, of morning mist and overshadowed dells. It depicts a path that is illuminated by the reflections of sunlight on the snow between towering peaks of the Himalayas.

The display of colours and light form an integral part in its overall compositional quality.

“I live and breathe mountains and I feel them. I enjoy the development of how light plays with the four elements and how every colour on earth becomes visible,” said the artist, explaining his long and loving relationship with the mountains.

He represents women with voluptuous bodies and pale skin in his series Divided Self, that began in 1971.

His work makes the viewer pause and contemplate on the dignity and the seriousness of his subjects.

The colour palette is more subdued, the figures are subtler in their nature and moods, and his pictures appear to take shape from within the canvas, sculpted onto the surface of the work.

In his words, “In a figurative painting, I look for a certain mystery. A relationship between varying moods – the figure must be expressive and yet contained, embody sadness and yet not be obvious, suggest movement and yet be still – things like that, which bring divergent elements together. These are the visual concerns I’m after.”

This exhibition also features his latest series, the Wood Nymphs, based on spirit like figures in a Himalayan landscape setting.

Extensively exhibited at home and abroad, he has also served the country as Director General of the Pakistan National Council of the Arts.

The display will run till March 15, 2014.