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Harappan connections opens at Gandhara Art Space

Harappan connections opens at Gandhara Art Space

An advantage of travelling back in time through art is to understand cultural indicators of pluralistic aspect of region
15 Jan, 2016

KARACHI: An exhibition of ancient artefacts, contemporary potteries and interpretive artworks titled Harappan connections opened at the Gandhara Art Space on Thursday evening.

Apart from being a photographic exhibition of Harappan artefacts that are part of the Lahore Museum’s permanent collection of the Indus Vallery Civilisation objects, the display also includes terracotta replicas made by Mohammad Nawaz and contemporary potteries of Sheherezade Alam, providing a link with the 5,000-year-old ceramic legacy as well as artworks made by students of fine art, design, archaeology, architecture, anthropology and history.

A significant advantage of travelling back in time through art is to understand the cultural indicators that have been a long standing (civilisational) pluralistic aspect of our region. The viewer notices it immediately by virtue of a drawing of ‘Shiv as master of animals seal’ by Samara Shahid.

Pot with a bull and pipal by Javaria Ahmad (acrylic on paper).
Pot with a bull and pipal by Javaria Ahmad (acrylic on paper).

The sense of history is evoked on multiple levels, the foremost of which is the symbiotic relationship between deities and worshippers. The same section of the show contains images about burial customs, reinforcing the idea that cultural norms are not a static phenomenon; they keep changing and, in some cases, evolving.

Javaria Ahmad’s acrylic on paper depiction of a pot with an ibex, pheasant and goat is eye-catching. The artist’s tribute to ancient times is marked with skill and craft that brims with a fondness for yesteryear glory.

But at the heart of it all is ren­owned ceramist Sheherezade Alam’s work. Her pottery allows the viewer to have both a visual and tactile experience of a unique nature. No less intriguing are Mohammad Nawaz’s terracotta pieces, especially his storage containers.

Perhaps the most intriguing exhibit on display is the grand plan of Moenjodaro’s Great Bath copied by Jabran A. Tariq and Anosh N. Butt (graphite pencil and pen on tea-stained paper). It may point to a physical space, which experts believe was a tank that had a religious function, but there is a certain charm to the piece which, in the Aristotelian sense, turns it into a work of art surpassing the original. By the way, the copy of Moenjodaro’s site plan is no ordinary work either.

In terms of size, the viewer cannot miss the two big maps, one of which is about Indus sites and the other is to do with the legacies connecting the 3rd millennium BCE and 3rd millennium CE.

The exhibition will run until Jan 24.

Published in Dawn, January 15th, 2016

Comments

Milan Jan 15, 2016 10:27am
Nice. If only the exhibit was international.
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Khwarezmi Jan 15, 2016 12:47pm
Pakistan has a fantastic history streaching thousands of years back in time. Indus River delta was one of the earliest places human civilization came to be. Mehrgarh settlements in Balochistan goes back 10.000 years and it is believed their decendants later on moved to Sindh and Punjab and founded the Indus Vally Civilization. Pakistan has so much diversity with different cultures, languages, landscapes and ethnicities. I can drive a couple of hours in any direction and will hardly understand their language/accent.
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Dr.Arshad Jan 15, 2016 02:48pm
Great! Keep it up! There is no dearth of talented artists in our country. @MILAN ....is correct ,hold such exhibitions in international galleries.
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Bupi Jan 15, 2016 06:34pm
Salute from this side of Subcontinent. We can reform our future but past will remain as it was for years to come.
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pshailendra Jan 15, 2016 07:59pm
Hope the article has shown some additional photos. I wish there is a virtual tour of the place - so that people can learn the history - and it will help preserve the sites
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R S Chakravarti Jan 16, 2016 11:06am
The maps should have been included.
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Bhushan Parimoo Jan 17, 2016 03:47pm
appreciable efforts are made to aware younger generation about art and culture we have invariably inherited and should be proud to cherish
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