The epic opening of the National Art Gallery (NAG) in Islamabad was impressive by any standard as the splendidly designed building lent itself well to the diverse art that has come out of the artists' studios for the last six decades. Grouped in 16 exhibitions it covers the breadth of the Pakistan's art landscape.

The festive mood of the art community was mingled with relief at the inauguration which was held after the lapse of several deadlines and at one point had appeared an elusive dream.

The celebrations went on for two days with the ceremonial opening for officials and dignitaries on Aug 25th followed by an open house for artists and media the next day.

It was interesting to see the enthusiasm of the Chief Guest, President Musharraf who frankly confessed how impressed he was by the exhibitions and called it Pakistan's best kept secret.

After the patting on the back ends it is important to review the success of the inaugural shows and chart a course that will build NAG into an institution which the country can be proud of. To begin with, it is important to understand the reasons why the President called the exhibitions, the country's best kept secret. If it is because a comprehensive national art collection has never had such an impressive venue or because art has been marginalised by design and lost the support of the public sector?

Sadly, in Pakistan, art has not featured high enough on the cultural map to qualify for serious and consistent funding and promotion. However, this has not kept governments from politicising the arts. Even before Ziaul Haq Pakistan's cultural policy was a controversial document and to date the recommendations by professionals have not been valued enough to be included.

Today art is being looked upon as an extension of the policy of enlightened moderation by the Government with NAG being perceived as its showplace. Such a myopic view may facilitate the completion and launch of the NAG but it can only prove counter productive in turning it into an institution.

For true enlightenment, art needs to be understood and recognised as a significant form of expression for its infinite ability to reflect the spirit of a people. For it to evolve from the grassroots it needs to be understood beyond commercial and propaganda stereotypes.

To tap the natural creativity of people we need to prioritise art and craft education in the schools of the country and turn it into a currency that upholds independent thinking and creative skills. Only the creation of a critical mass within our population that believes in their own inherent talent can solve issues of identity and shared creativity can be a key link to internal unity.

In the present scenario two parallel art worlds exist in Pakistan. The artists and art professionals in the private sector who, with enterprise, knowledge and commitment are making breakthroughs in education, marketing, publication and curatorial work to gain global recognition for the art of the country. The officials of state cultural institutions, without a development friendly system, have slipped into apathy and are out of step with the world and tend to see art only through the prism of official policies.

To benefit NAG a partnership of private and public players and institutions is crucial. The PNCA has taken the initiative by extending an invitation to independent curators for the inaugural shows. The working together has been a learning curve for both groups and with a good working relationship they can make a formidable team.

One fact both groups agree on is that NAG needs trained professionals and systems to match its world class architecture. The best way is to set a realistic deadline of two years to create a professional group to cover all areas of museum management from installing shows, preparing signage to documentation and restoration. For this an expert will have to be imported for this period with a mandate to train people to run the NAG on the pattern of major galleries of the world.

I hear from various sources that the Ministry of Culture simply does not have a budget to give PNCA even running expenses of NAG. The salary structure is far too low to attract the best art graduates in the country. One would have thought a realistic business plan would have been hammered out by now for this important institution.

These are serious issues that need urgent attention as it would be a great loss to the Pakistani people if we were to settle for ad-hocism once again and allow NAG to slip and become a centre of inefficiency and mediocrity.