To express true sentiments, if one were to choose between writing and painting, the obvious choice would be painting owing to its spontaneous impact on the viewer. Although Komail Aijazuddin is a prolific journalist and an adept writer, he frequently resorts to painting for the more complex expression. Needless to add; he casts a worthy impression through his paintings which always go beyond the thousand words’ threshold!

After his previous exhibition titled, ‘Altars’ at the Canvas Gallery, Karachi, in 2011, which was received well by the city’s art lovers, Aijazuddin has made a comeback at the same gallery with a collection of nine fresh works titled ‘Pray tell’. This set of paintings on canvas and wood panels, written in a vocabulary from the Western religious art, highlight the artist’s struggle to reconcile with faith that is structured on institutionalised religion and his strife for national identity in the backdrop of the prevalent inhibitions and apathy.

The artworks discuss Islamic history, mythology and contemporary culture; specifically because of the parallels Aijazuddin has found between the Shia belief and Western iconography.

Over the centuries, Western art was greatly influenced by religion and saw major advancements in technique and content, particularly during the Renaissance period. The commissions of the Church coupled with profuse devotion produced marvels that astound even the most demanding. For instance, at the St Peter’s Basilica in Rome, one can see the enormity of architecture and the striking statues, such as Michelangelo's ‘Pieta’ and ‘Moses in chains’; these and many others stand testament to the immense motivational power of faith.

On the other hand, due to aniconism (proscription), Muslim art has remained limited to calligraphy, geometric patterns, arabesque and stylised life forms in miniature art. However, with the changing times and the need for enhanced intellectual communication, there are Muslim artists who have started to reveal the obscure through their vivid understanding of the religion, without being irreverent to the Islamic principles.

Among the exhibits, ‘Ecstasy in chaddar’ and ‘Martyr with halo’ in mixed media, are a pair of oblong drawings which depict Biblical characters. The latter, for instance, is an adaptation of Saint Sebastian, an early Christian martyr, painted earlier by artists like Andrea Mantegna, El Greco and Carlo Saraceni, among others. Both the drawings have been realistically rendered where the human anatomy and drapery, boast the artist’s adept draughtsmanship. The poignant message of martyrdom and sacrifice is obvious where the ubiquitous ‘Hand of Fatima’, on both the subjects, has been used as a halo to signify their sanctity.

In the painting titled, ‘Wives’, the artist depicts quintessence of Pakistani wives on a vibrant Turkish blue background. The subjects in the painting range from the glamorous aunty to the virgin in white, the seductress, the literary reader and the desperate teenager. For each of the subjects in the paintings, the artist has stories in his mind, but his objective is to present interesting characters with the hope that the viewers will engender their own narratives from what they observe.

The wooden altars, ‘Just kill 1, 2 and 3’, depict the sequence of a demise that begins with an expression of grief and ends with the silent acceptance that (in the absence of basic civic needs such as law and order, fuel, electricity, etc.) the end is near! The contemplative approach to these altars is based on the indecipherable idea that secularism is entirely an elitist concern; a belief that is as shortsighted as it is widespread.