The indomitable legends that established and sustained art in the northern regions of Pakistan from its early days, created a particular identity that continues against all odds. The succession of mentors who guided young enthusiasts are known to us as icons, and enshrined forever in the hearts of artists of the region.

Malik—an engineer by profession and an artist by choice—is someone who has constantly kept the memories of the founders of art in his region alive in recent times. He's a resolute fighter for the cause of art in his homeland. His initial art training from the Abasin Arts Council included a three-year diploma course in fine art guided by Shehzad Sultan Hyder (S.S.Hyder), followed by an advanced painting and sculpture course, and he subsequently worked as Hyder's assistant for 17 years. He is well-known in Pakistan's art circles as a representative of his area.

As he endeavored to pay homage to his teachers and to the artists who created a significant aesthetic ambience in the region, he never allowed those pioneers to be forgotten. One remembers his words “When Pakistan was being founded in 1947, Ghani Khan, a poet, philosopher, painter and sculptor, was the only art asset of this region.”

His words inspired my interest and as I began to research and discover Khan—an enigmatic, fascinating genius.The commissioner of Peshawar in the fifties was Mussarat Hussain Zuberi, a man deeply interested in the arts. He established the Abasin Arts Society and needed an artist with the attributes of expertise, and the gift of imparting skills to teach art. With Hyder's arrival in 1954, the art society began in earnest. It was a dynamic centre and an important venue of exhibitions and awards though the years.

In 1964, a department of Fine Arts with a strong faculty was set up in the Peshawar University. Prominent in the '60s was the President's Pride of Performance winner, sculptor Arbab Mohammad Sardar who held his first solo exhibition in 1962, and went on to study sculpture in Carrara, the hometown of Michael Angelo. For several years, he conducted classes at the Abasin Art Centre.

In recent times, it appears the Abasin Art Centre has not been available to the artists, but work continues as efforts are made to exhibit in other regions, such as Islamabad in recent months where one witnessed the integral love of the country transferred to canvas in beautiful landscapes and the haunting loveliness of the mountainous region.

Malik's success in compiling and documenting his heroes in this very important publication is of invaluable service in informing successive future artists, throughout Pakistan. He has included in his story every artist who has contributed to the cause such as Gulgee, Mansur Rahi and others, recalling times when a closeness and generosity, as well as appreciation between artists existed.