ISLAMABAD: Two contemporary miniature artists held a discussion about their journey from their time in the National College of Arts (NCA) in Lahore till the current exhibition of their works in the Pakistan National Council of Arts (PNCA) Sunday night.

Aisha Khalid and Imran Qureshi are exhibiting their art at the PNCA for the first time together.

The exhibition is spread across four galleries on the ground floor of the museum. The show consists of some 60 pieces including those especially created for this exhibition.

Aisha Khalid graduated in 1993, learnt classical miniature painting and is now one of the leading artists in contemporary miniature.

She is one of the few artists who experiments with large scale painting and abstraction and has also worked with textiles.

Textiles have always influenced her works, she told her audience.

“I was taught miniature in strict traditional style for four years. I eventually broke away from it, developing my own vocabulary and introducing patterns and figures,” she said.

When she was studying in one of the Scandinavian countries, Aisha incorporated the tulip in her art, which symbolises women and abuses of women’s bodies.

This was followed by changes in colour and the appearance of the veil, an aftermath of 9/11. She also painted on pages from exercise books and circular patterns started appearing in her works, symbolising wounds.

These patterns also appeared on her installations in commissioned works outside of Pakistan.

The impact of 9/11 in Afghanistan figured in her work in the form of bullet holes and she started painting the veil shortly afterwards, depicting the relationship between lovers and between man and God.

Recipient of several accolades, Imran Qureshi was awarded the US International Medal of the Arts by the State Department in 2017. He also graduated from the NCA in 1993 and has held numerous solo shows.

He began his career by questioning miniature painting and introducing figures, spacing and environments and experimenting with surfaces he created himself.

He explained how landscapes had entered his art, with foliage becoming an important element which continues to mark his paintings.

“I was interested in the process of miniature. I started painting on pages from very old text books and the foliage changed a little and my work became politically inclined,” he told his audience.

Mr Qureshi said he too was influenced by 9/11 after which the colours of his paintings had changed.

He said the red, blue and white in his work was inspired by the American flag.

But his work transitioned to more traditional styles, painting along the concept of modern enlightenment borrowed from military dictator retired General Pervaiz Musharraf.

He said religion crept in post 9/11, depicting followers as normal people doing normal things like changing clothes, reading and writing.

He said some of the patterns in his works appear like blood stains from a distance but on closer inspection, are really floral patterns, making a statement regarding the unnecessary conflict after 9/11.

The two artists also gave their audience a tour of the galleries where their works are on display.

Published in Dawn, May 22nd, 2017