Solo show by Atif Khan at Tanzara

Islamabad : Tanzara opened its gallery space on Thursday with a solo show by Mohammad Atif Khan who, in addition to his independent art practice, also teaches at the Department of Fine Arts at his alma mater, the National College of Arts in Lahore.

Titled ‘More Love Songs,’ the exhibition opened with rigid implementation of COVID-19 SOPs in order to ensure the safety of visitors and staff alike. A limited number of people at a time were allowed entry in order to facilitate social distancing. Masks were mandatory.

In a statement describing his work, Atif said, “I dhave eveloped my visual vocabulary and imagery on the lines of popular visual culture of Pakistan, which is an amalgamation of Central Asian and Persian aesthetics with a local South Asian blend, where storytelling is an important feature to express thoughts.”

Moving on, the artist said, “When I create my work using the juxtaposition of images of diverse and contrasting environments in one space, it subverts their original contextual meaning and suggests new stories, which revolves around the social, economical, political or historical realities but in a subtle way—just like sugar-coated pills which are sweet from outside but bitter from inside.”

The use of Mughal iconography in his work expands the time zone of Atif’s canvas, from the present day to a few hundred years in the past. This helps viewers to free their minds from the limitations of real time and to enter into an imaginary world. The exhibition, which will continue till November 5, is certainly worth viewing.