Daily Times

You are a prominent visual artist lauded both at home and abroad. Tell us about your venture into art and design.

How did I become an artist? Well, there’s an interesting story behind it. I reckon I may be one of the few Pakistani children whose parents wanted their child to attend an art school, and I refused. Instead, I told them I’d rather go to a business school. So that in itself is quite an odd story. I don’t have a formal education in art; I’m a self-taught artist. I have an MBA degree, but I’ve been practising art one way or the other since school.

Most of the work we’ve seen has a lot of uplifting colours. What is the idea behind that?

I use various bright colours in my paintings as I believe each colour brings a different kind of emotion to a viewer. Therefore, I use those colours to a maximum extent to bring out a particular emotion in the viewer. That’s part of the reason most of my paintings are really colourful. With that being said, there are also paintings where I’ve only used white or black. So in my art pieces, colour plays a crucial role in playing with the emotional topics that I’m speaking about.

Is your work message based?

All of my work is message based. There’s always a concept behind every art piece I produce. For me, it’s a conversation starter as I want to convey my message to the viewer through my artwork. I see it as a tool to communicate with the viewer and relay my message.

Why haven’t you ever delved into clearer image painting?

I am a trained figurative artist. I’ve studied live drawings and paintings for two years. I used to do figurative paintings, but then I just got bored of that, or maybe I lacked patience to do the details. Most importantly, however, I tend to gravitate towards conceptual work because I like conversation starting pieces where people can stand in front of the painting and talk about it. So that’s why most of my pieces are abstract and more conceptually linked.

Your exhibitions are always sold out. Tell us about your clientele.

I have been blessed to have all my shows sold out. I’m glad that people appreciate my work. The kind of folks who buy my art has a different range of people. Even to my surprise, the way people connect to the art is the main selling point. Because I have seen people with tears in their eyes just by looking at my art as they connect with it on an emotional level. Different people react differently to my artwork. So when it comes to my clients, I can’t really pinpoint as to who my client is and who isn’t. I feel it’s all about how my art speaks to the viewer and how they connect to it.

You are one of the humblest and down to earth artists we know. What kind of ethics do you bring to your work?

For me, painting is like talking to myself. So whenever I’m painting, I’m letting my internal emotions pour out on a canvass. This is how I work. Every time I’m producing a piece, it starts with ample research. Every piece I’ve produced has to have some research behind it. That’s because most of my work talks about a particular topic. And for me, to have that understanding of the topic clearly is really important.

How do you price your work?

I formulate a price point in my mind and then share it with the gallery that displays my work. I let them decide as to how they want to price it. I’m mainly an artist who wants to paint. To me, my main focus should be to paint and be creative. When it comes to the business aspect of art, I let the professionals at the gallery decide for me.

Do you take orders?

I rarely take commission work because, I feel, it restricts an artist a little. As an artist, I like my freedom. When I do take commission work, it’s from people I like. I then sit with the client and have a discussion over a cup of coffee to get to know that person. My work is mostly about Pakistani society, the norms here, and people around me. Therefore, if I’m doing a commission work, I like to make it more personalised for the person who has commissioned it. So I sit with them and hear their story to draw inspiration from and then further base my artwork accordingly.

What are you currently working on?

At the moment, I’m working on a piece about cancer survivors. It explores what the patients and their families go through. I’ve lost a few family members to cancer and know some cancer survivors. So I’ve seen firsthand how it takes an emotional toll on the patient and their family. I’m doing it in collaboration with the Pink Ribbon Foundation. All the money from the sale will go to the foundation for raising awareness about breast cancer in Pakistan.

According to you, what has been your greatest achievement thus far?

One of the biggest achievements so far was when my work was displayed next to Andy Warhol and Damien Hirst’s work in the US. I grew up idolising the two. In fact, I’ve also seen Hirst’s work in galleries in London when I was young. So to have had my work displayed in the same space as Warhol and Hearse was a massive achievement for me.

With your sheer brilliance and hard work you are one of the most influential people in the country. Who influenced you to pursue your current line of work?

I have always been fascinated by Pablo Picasso, Vincent Van Gogh and all these artists in the modern era. It has stayed with me and reflected in my work – and is all the more true when we discuss my use of bright colours.