KARACHI, Nov 26: Stimulating discussions continued on the second and the final day of the international seminar on art, 'Mapping the change, particularly when they followed the talks concerning the art scene in Pakistan.

The first speaker of the day was Ludovico Pratesi, curator, critic and secretary-general of the AICA, Italy, who gave an introduction to the contemporary Italian women artists. The works that he showed were not entirely pure paintings, there were photographs which were hand-painted and treated by computers.

More colourful and interesting images were shown by Dr Dilara Vahabhova, reflecting the culture of her country - Azerbaijan. The art critic, with a number of publications to her credit, outlined the recent trends in the fine arts of the Central Asian country.

Dr Leon Waiwright of the University of Sussex, who concentrated on the futurology of Britain's diaspora presence, had to rephrase some points when the well known Britain-based art historian and critic Rasheed Araeen raised some objections.

Raja Changez Sultan, Director-General, National Council of the Arts, and himself a painter of repute, lamented that the media didn't cover art adequately. And whatever appeared in the press left much to be desired, he added.

Senior architect from Lahore Kamil Khan Mumtaz, spoke in Urdu, but he made sure that the translation of his talk was available to the foreign delegates. However, the two most interesting speakers, who managed their time very well, were Dr Samina Shah from Lahore, who dwelt on the art scene of her city, as it was shortly before and immediately after partition of India, and Dr Alka Pande, consultant and curator of an art gallery in New Delhi.

Dr Pande, speaking on Indian art scene, termed leading artists, such as M F Hussain, brands. She also highlighted the many facets of India - modern, rural and tribal. At the final session of the day - 'SAARC Art - a shared legacy', Pooja Sood, talked about interactions between artists of the region.

She was involved in an art exhibition in Lahore comprising works of young and old South Asian artists- appropriately titled Old Masters, New Voices. Her talk evoked a lot of interest, and so did Alnoor Mitha's, who runs an art agency in Manchester. Sheesha, as the gallery is called, specialises in introducing South Asian arts and crafts, not only in the UK but also in mainland Europe.

Sangeeta Thapar, a Nepali art historian, highlighted the role played by the artists who focused on the socio-political ills in her country, and the price that some of them had to pay. The scenes were not too unfamiliar to her Pakistani audience.

Dr Rasheed Araeen, who chaired the final session, stressed the need for exchanges of art and artists among the South Asian countries. In his closing remarks, Henry Meyrie Hughes, International President of the AICA, emphasized the importance of such encounters.

Talking to this writer, Jalaludin Ahmad, the founder president of AICA, said that it was Meyrie Hughes, who encouraged the revival of the Pakistan chapter of AICA. His successor Nilofer Furrukh announced that seminars would be annual features, adding that the proceedings of the next seminar, may well be in Urdu. Some of the leading importers and publishers had put up books on art and culture on display.