KARACHI: Shahid Sajjad, a distinguished artist and the country’s premier sculptor, passed away on Monday morning after a long illness. He was 77. He leaves behind his wife and two sons.

Mr Sajjad was born in Muzaffarnagar (UP) in 1936. According to one account, he left school after class VIII to indulge his passion for art. After struggling in some odd jobs at a young age, he joined the world of advertising.

In his own words, he gave up advertising so that he could ride a motorbike and travel around the globe. A bohemian that he was, he flew out to Japan on an adventure during which he saw wood carving and made up his mind then and there to immerse himself in this fascinating art form.

He came back to Karachi, but after some time left for Rangamati, in Chittagong Hill Tracts (Bangladesh) in the 1970s. He lived among the district’s tribal groups for a considerable time. Some suggest it was here that his passion for wood carving gained a fresh impetus.

He used other materials as well and the bronze mural that he made at Nowshera for the Armoured Corps Division Headquarters. It is regarded as an iconic piece of art. It was an ambitious project and took a few years to complete.

Aficionados placed Mr Sajjad in the same league as Shakir Ali and Sadequain.

He was an ardent admirer of Gauguin and Rodin. The artist was fond of Urdu poet Ghalib too and often used to quote his couplet:

Hasti ke mat fareb mein aa jayo Asad Alam tamam halqa-i-daam-i-khayal hai (Don’t get drawn into the deception of existence The universe is but a ringlet in the web of thought) His funeral prayers will be held at Imam Bargah Yasrab, Defence Society.

HE DIDN’T NEED PRAISE: Shahid Sajjad’s death shocked the country’s art fraternity.

Prominent artists and art critics here paid glowing tribute to contributions made by Shahid Sajjad.

Talking to Dawn, art critic Marjorie Husain said: “He was an artist in himself. He worked alone. He spent two years in the Chittagong Hill Tracts working in wood. He didn’t need any praise and went on doing his work.

“He used all sorts of material. In 1980, he was commissioned by the Armoured Corps to depict cavalry through the ages. It was a huge piece, a large bronze relief. He was excited to do the history of the cavalry.

“To me, his piece at the Maritime Museum, ‘Guardian of the Seas’, is one of the most moving artworks I’ve ever seen. It’s a life-size figure, a sailor standing stoically on guard.”

Artist and a former Principal of the National College of Arts, Nazish Ataullah, said: “Shahid was one of the most important artists in Pakistan. He was a modernist. For a long time he was the only sculptor on the Pakistani art scene.

“He worked in a wide variety of media, starting off by painting, then in wood, and ending up in bronze. He was the first person to cast in bronze.

“His real achievement was traditional bronze casting done in his studio at his home. Shahid made possibly the largest bronze relief commissioned for the Armoured Corps in Nowshera in the ‘80s. He exhibited regularly. We brought out a book on him by Akbar Naqvi and did a retrospective of his work at NCA.

“He was a great thinker and a philosopher, a very exceptional person, very wise man, a great guide to many people. He valued his opinion and took them very seriously.”

Critic Nilofur Farrukh said: “He was one of our most eminent artists. His contribution to sculpture is unparalleled. Despite everything, he was true to himself. He had chosen a difficult path, tough to sustain himself as a sculptor. He executed all his pieces himself. He was a man of tremendous integrity, a true Pakistani hero, someone who lived by what he thought in spite of all the hardships.”

Artist Mehr Afroz said: “Shahid’s death is the death of an era. It’s a huge loss. We can no longer tell our children as to what a true artist looks like. Shahid practised what he preached. It will be very difficult to have a sculptor of his calibre.”

Artist Abdul Jabbar Gul said: “He was a legend. His work could be put alongside that of any great international artist. He was my favourite.”

Sameera Raja, who runs the Canvas Art Gallery, said: “It’s extremely sad. He was one of the biggest names in art, the most eminent sculptor of our times.”

Published in Dawn, July 29th, 2014