KARACHI: A group exhibition with an interesting title Love, Hope, Fear is under way at the Art Scene Gallery. There are works of 10 artists on view in the exhibition curated by Marium Hanif. The title is interesting because of the order in which the three important aspects of life appear. Love comes first, justifiably so. But then, in the world that we live in, fear lurks underneath almost everything we do. And, can we live without hope?

This is very well illustrated in Zaman Baloch’s untitled piece (acrylic on archival sheet) in which a single frame is packed with quite a few images. Each image can be studied as an individual story, and at the same time they have a cumulative effect (which is perhaps the right way of interpreting it) with a holistic meaning. The landscape, the men and the animals in the picture give off a hopeful vibe tinged with love. But the tree that has a personality of its own serves as the barometer to understand the oncoming season. Be it ominous or benevolent, the tree can tell all.

Minahil Bulgari employs the metaphor of time in an incisive exhibit called ‘Locked out of Life’ (gouache, graphite and gold on wasli). The artist focuses on the temporality of existence where time is of the essence. The lightness of colours reinforces the idea to have a powerful impact on the viewer.

Usman Alvi brings it all into the contemporary setting where the chaos in urban areas has become a norm. He keeps the objects at a distance from each other to suggest disparateness in common ground, with a hint of surrealistic flair that art lovers always admire.

There are also artworks by Hira Zubair, Javed Iqbal Mughal, Moattar Zafar, Nageen Naz, Raza-ul-Rehman, Sana Shafiq and Saleena Shahid on display.

The show will be open until May 5.

Published in Dawn, May 2nd, 2017