Pakistan may be underperforming in physical capital formation, but its visual artists are building a growing stock of social and cultural capital, and increasingly gaining recognition in global art circles. Much of the trade, however, remains undocumented, and even formal transactions often underreport actual values for obvious reasons.

In the absence of systematic data on inventory and annual sales, the market’s size and growth trends are difficult to gauge. Anecdotal evidence, however, points to slow but steady expansion, particularly since the early 2000s.

Based on interviews with artists and gallery operators, the market — though growing — remains small and is yet to cross the billion-rupee mark. Some stakeholders also argue that entities with vested interests deliberately understate their size, enabling tax evasion and suppressing payouts to artists.

Multiple sources said works by a handful of contemporary artists are fetching between Rs30-60 million per piece. “There may be only five to 10 artists in this top tier, and about 25 to 30 who command prices in tens of millions. But the number of artists able to sell even above Rs100,000 likely does not exceed 150 nationwide,” a well-connected gallery owner in Karachi said.

‘Occasionally, we come across pieces that we believe may be original; I have held on to some of them in the hope of getting them certified one day, which could multiply their value many times over’

Globally, the art market is largely self-regulated, guided by codes of ethics and voluntarily adopted best practices among dealers, galleries and auction houses; the market runs heavily on trust, the buyers’ connoisseurship, and respect for the artist.

In Pakistan, however, the absence of a formal regulatory framework makes the art market appear fragmented and, at times, exploitative. With no robust system of authentication, unsuspecting buyers sometimes end up paying the original price for copies, with little or no recourse for redressal in cases of fraud.

According to information gathered, galleries typically charge five to 10 per cent on works by top-tier artists and 25pc to 30pc for others. In practice, however, the absence of formal documentation often leads to underreporting of transaction values, resulting in artists receiving less than their fair share. Painters with limited marketing skills or access to elite buyers or collectors remain dependent on such dealers due to a lack of viable alternatives.

An art enthusiast, who has befriended several leading artists, explains his belief that gallery operators with wider outreach are the primary beneficiaries of the market’s growth, rather than the artists themselves, regardless of the quality of their work. “Artists are often eccentric and not market savvy; the business side of art is largely controlled by gallery owners, who tend to capitalise at the artists’ expense,” he said.

A former tax official alleged that many large gallery owners underreport income to evade taxes. Recalling his time in service, he said a raid on an art gallery in Karachi revealed declared earnings were only a fraction of what seized records indicated, figures he still suspected were below the actual turnover. “We recovered the dues for that year, but I cannot say what happened after my transfer. With strong connections in power corridors, many manage to get the authorities to look the other way,” he said.

Resales of artworks are often conducted privately between wealthy collectors, with little or no formal documentation or audit trail. “In many cases, high-value pieces are used to park or deploy unaccounted wealth,” he added.

“I recently visited a friend whose art collection was worth at least three times the value of her large house,” a leading artist said, referring to a former schoolmate now married to a bureaucrat.

When asked to identify regular buyers in Pakistan’s art market, most sources pointed to local and overseas Pakistani bankers as a prominent group, alongside a few established business families with a longstanding interest in art. “A segment of the newly affluent, some with opaque wealth trails, use high-value art as a marker of taste and status, while others, amid uncertainty in traditional investment avenues, are increasingly turning to paintings as a store of value,” another artist observed.

Adil, a framer at Tariq Road in Karachi, who deals in art prints and keeps a small collection of mostly student calligraphy, claimed that certificates of authenticity can be obtained for a price. He said some dealers offer such certificates for Rs100,000 to Rs300,000.

“Occasionally, we come across pieces that we believe may be original, but from our shop, they can only be sold for a few thousand. I have held on to some of them in the hope of getting them certified one day, which could multiply their value many times over,” he said.

Khalil Ahmed, owner of Ocean Art Gallery, dismissed the claims of any formal certification system for verifying the authenticity of paintings in Pakistan. “There are con men in every sector. Much of this is make-believe. Only the artist himself, or someone closely associated with them, can reliably confirm whether a work is original or a copy,” he said.

He also lamented the lack of corporate support for visual arts and emerging talent in the country.

Masuma Halai Khawaja, a leading artist, curator and educationist, said visual art is not merely a technique but about awareness, societal understanding, and an appreciation of heritage, along with creating platforms that engage the public.

“Artists must go beyond skill-building and invest in deeper learning to develop originality and creative depth. For the market to grow, they need to break out of narrow elite circles and connect with wider society. We must work harder to learn, to listen to suppressed voices, both for creative fulfilment and material success,” she said.

Published in Dawn, The Business and Finance Weekly, May 4th, 2026