KARACHI: Readers of Urdu digests cannot disassociate the art that accompanied the stories and essays published in them from the exhilarating reading experience. The delectable illustrations and drawings are effective on two counts: one, they provide readers with a visual interpretation, albeit by virtue of encapsulation, of the subjects; two, they add an aesthetic dimension to the grey text. The late Sajjad Ahmed Siddiqui (1919-1989) was a remarkable artist. He worked for many Urdu magazines, including Shama (in Delhi, before migrating to Pakistan) and Akhbar-i-Jahan, Jasoosi Digest, Subrung and Alami Digest. His son, Zafar Siddiqui, has taken after his father, earning a reputable name in the same field. An exhibition of artworks created by both Sajjad and Zafar Siddiqui titled Kaghazi hai pairahan her pekar-i-tasvir ka opened at the Alliance Francaise on Saturday.

It has on view a decent variety of artworks that the artists made for different digests.

The hallmark of the pieces on display is the uninhibited emotive aspect of the illustrations that sets digest art apart from the rest of the genres. The characters, particularly female and especially young women, are shown as pensive creatures (in accordance with the crux of a majority of stories) whose beauty is augmented by the pensiveness. This is done by using gentle strokes and drawing contour lines that describe the face (read: tale) with poignancy.

It does not mean that the artworks do not carry any kind of symbolism. In a fine piece, a woman’s hair is eerily combined with the hovering clouds in a way that they become part of her thought process.

Then there are sketches which depict a crime scene. The viewer can tell by the way the man wearing a hat is perusing a scene. Sajjad sahib was particularly good at it. He knew well how to show an act(ion) that has already happened but can only be gauged from what’s left, or not left, behind.

And how can poetry not feature in the scheme of things? There are exhibits which amply signify influences from the world of rhyme and rhythm in the artists’ works. In fact, the title of the show, taken from a verse by the inimitable Ghalib, itself is a testimony to that.

The exhibition will remain open till Nov 30.

Published in Dawn, November 22nd, 2015