Exhibition of printmaking from India, Pakistan in Sharjah

Relations between India and Pakistan have always been complex, and an exhibition of printmaking from India and Pakistan at the Sharjah Art Museum seeks to create bridges of dialogue and understanding through shared culture and art.

The Sharjah Museums Department (SMD) announced the opening of ‘Trajectories: 19th-21st Century Printmaking from India and Pakistan’, which has been curated by Dr Paula Sengupta, an artist, academic, art critic and curator based in Kolkata, India; and Camilla H Chaudhary, an independent curator from Karachi but residing in Dubai.

The exhibition, which opens on September 10 and is set to run through November 20, will introduce India’s and Pakistan’s shared cultural and artistic history to a UAE audience.

Manal Ataya, SMD Director-General, said: “The UAE is home to a large and thriving South Asian population, and we believe that Trajectories honours their cultural heritage.” The exhibition will highlight the various printmaking schools that have emerged in Pakistan and India since late 19th century and into the contemporary context.

The medium of printmaking has been used by the artists represented as a vehicle for conceiving imaginative vocabularies that probe the boundaries of society both historically and into the present. The exhibition, which encompasses more than 120 works, and includes rare specimens of prints from the colonial period and important works by prominent artists such as Mukul Dey, Zarina Hashmi, Zahoor-ul-Akhlaq and Anwar Jelal Shemza, begins with a visual journey back through the pre-Partition era, with an emphasis on 19th and early 20th century bazaar prints.

Ataya added: “Both India and Pakistan are distinguished with established printmaking schools, movements, and artists and this exhibition seeks to highlight that legacy while placing them in context within the overall timeline of art history worldwide.”

The event is open to the public and is scheduled to be held at Sharjah Art Museum from 6.30pm to 9pm. Admission is free of charge. The SMD will also be hosting two educational events in conjunction with Trajectories — a panel discussion and an academic day — apart from various workshops and activities offered to school children (pre-bookings required). The discussion is free and open to the public and will be held at Sharjah Art Museum on September 13, from 5pm to 7pm.

The SMD Education Division will also host a group of teachers from different schools for a special morning programme on September 15. There will also be a weekend workshop for families on October 18.

dhanusha@khaleejtimes.com