Famous Pakistani artist Jamil Naqsh passes away in London

LONDON: Famous Pakistani artist Jamil Naqsh passed away in London on Thursday aged 80, he was suffering from 'serious pneumonia'.

Naqsh was admitted to St Mary’s Hospital in London on May 7, and doctors were not optimistic about his deteriorating health.

After creating innumerous masterpieces in this world for over six decades, he has returned back to his Creator, his wife Najmi Sura said in a statement. 

Naqsh leaves behind an illustrious career in the field of Fine Arts, and will be known as the one of the pioneers in redefining Abstract, Still-Life, Calligraphy and many other genres.

He will not only be remembered by his family, but will also go down in history as a ‘Relentless Painter’ who opted for reclusiveness to focus on his work over the other joys of life.

Known as one of the greatest artists of his generation, Naqsh was a celebrated artist, famous for his calligraphy, pigeons and figurative paintings.

He was was born in Kairana, India in 1939 after which he moved to Pakistan.

In his early teens, he had the experience of traveling alone through Chittagong, Calcutta and Colombo. He learned a lot about life in that harsh journey. He also gained great respect for the artistic traditions of the past, while traveling.

Naqsh was trained as a miniaturist under former NCA professor Ustaad Haji Sharif in Lahore. 

A dropout of the National College of Arts, Naqsh was honoured with the Pride of Performance Award in 1989 and Sitara-i-Imtiaz in 2009.

Naqsh resided in London since 2012.

The death of Jamil Naqsh is a great loss to the art community.