I Love Miniatures

Despite popular belief, one of Pakistan’s most celebrated artists Rashid Rana, was not trained as a miniaturist. While experimenting with variations of the grid and linear striations, he discovered his distinctive mode of micro-macro image formation with his work ‘I Love Miniatures’.

Created in 2004, this was a depiction of the traditional, oft-depicted profile of Mughal emperor Shah Jahan. However, closer inspection would reveal a photomontage of hundreds of smaller images of street banners that also referenced his own relationship with the social and political context of his city of birth, Lahore

Set in a gilded frame, the work critiqued and pushed the boundaries of neo-miniature and hinted at the massive global attention to the genre. Response to other forms of practice in Pakistan paled in comparison, perhaps due to the ‘exotic’ appeal of the miniature tradition. ‘I Love Miniatures’ has shaped new notions of art in Pakistan and heralded innovative image-making through digital and computing techniques.

In the final part of the two-part series, our Art team discusses 10 specific works that altered the course of art history in Pakistan

Henna Hands

Naiza Khan will always be acknowledged for her uniquely bold public interventions titled ‘Henna Hands’ created in Karachi in 2001. These were life-sized ephemeral public works that located and looked at art beyond the gallery space and endeavoured to engage diverse audiences and address important issues of feminism and the male gaze. Henna, (Mehndi) which is rooted in Pakistani society as a natural pigment used at times of celebration, especially to adorn a bride, or even as a natural hair dye took on the role of medium. With this innately gendered medium Khan created nude female forms on the walls of the Cantonment Section of the Railway Colony, Karachi.

The works were challenging and stirred much debate in art circles as well as the street-faring audience for their use of the female body in a public setting and could indeed be critiqued for their over provocative nature.

Published in Dawn, Sunday Magazine, March 29th, 2015

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