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Vasl Artists' Association, a vibrant platform fostering artistic growth, cultural exchange, and creative freedom. Since 2001, we've connected over 700 artists from Pakistan and around the world, supporting their journey through residencies, workshops, and innovative programs.

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Residencies

Afterwords | Curated by Sehrish Mustafa

Details
Category:
Residencies
Dates:
Apr 28, 2024
Artists:
Aisha Suria, Danish Kumar Gahlot, Maryam Zia, Vania Mazhar, Wajeeha Batool
Location:
Haji Abdullah Haroon Vocational Training Center, Lyari, Karachi
Supported by:
British Council, Gasworks, KKAF, Amadeus, HBL, Shehnaz Ismail Sharifa and Sultan Ali Allana, Karachi Theosophical Society
Curated by:
Sehrish Mustafa

Curatorial Note:

The language, beyond its mundane, practical, and usual function, may not be available for accessing/expressing desires, dreams, and detachments. Afterwords manifests personal, social, and cultural inquiries that have stripped substance (or body) of its specificity, solidity, and innocence, bringing the essence of what exists inside, externally, and in-between. 

The artists involved in this project re-examine histories and stories that have influenced their sensory, collective, and corporeal formation. The experience through our senses is what makes us human, not only as oneself but also in our relationship with separate and split identities.

The site, surroundings, and exhibits all invoke the prime and primordial issues of existence, ecology, the mystery and memory of death, and the unbearable pain of human relationships – in formats, materials, strategies, and imagery that invite and anticipate our visual, physical, prolonged – and permanent participation. 

 

Sehrish Mustafa – Curator

Sehrish Mustafa, a Lahore-based creative professional, demonstrates her talents as a visual artist, writer, and art curator. She has obtained a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the National College of Arts, specializing in the discipline of Miniature Painting. Sehrish’s work has been showcased in a multitude of exhibitions, both on a national and international scale. She has authored numerous art reviews and catalogue essays for reputable galleries and esteemed online publications galleries, showcasing her ability to articulate the significance and meaning behind artistic works.

 She has curated several successful exhibitions locally and internationally and is passionate about curating contemporary dialogues in Pakistani art and has also shared her knowledge and expertise by teaching in an academic capacity. She remains actively engaged in her creative practice, currently operating from her studio in Lahore.

 

Participating Artists

Aisha Suria

Aisha Suria is a visual artist and performer who graduated from the National College of Arts, Lahore, and currently lives and works in Lahore, Pakistan. Her practice includes painting, drawing/writing, printmaking, theatre, and performance art. Suria further hopes to delve into the medium of film and understand it as a form of communication and self-awareness.

 

Danish Kumar Gahlot

Danish Kumar Gahlot belongs to Umerkot, Sindh. He did his graduation from the National College of Arts, Lahore, in 2021 from the Department of Fine Arts with a major in painting. Danish works with a wide range of mediums, including painting, printmaking, sculptures, site-specific works, and installations.

Some of his selected exhibitions include ” JUGAAR”, Design Summit, Lahore 2021 “DATUM 2.3”, Lahore Expo Centre 2023, “BEYOND THE THRESHOLD OF TIME”, (Young Artist Exhibition) Alhamra Art Gallery, 2021.

Presently, Danish is running his art studio “The Gahlot” in Lahore, where he shares his deep knowledge and skills with his students and emerging talent.

 

Maryam Zia

Maryam Zia is a visual artist based in Lahore. She graduated from the National College of Arts (in 2023) with a distinction in Fine Arts, majoring in Sculpture. Her work is based primarily on sculpture, painting, installation, and drawing. Her work has been exhibited at Full Circle Gallery, Karachi (2023), and Khaas Contemporary, Islamabad. (2023).

 

Vania Mazhar

Vania Mazhar is a Lahore-based visual artist who graduated from the National College of Arts with a BFA in painting. She works with traditional painting mediums and pixels alike, sketches everything around her, and photographs when the painting takes a toll on her. The main subject of Mazhar’s work is exploring, recording, and dissecting mundane moments lost to the routine of everyday life, which is crucial to her because documentation preserves a particular time, person, or event. Her art-making process consists of a lot of observation, documentation, and painting in semi-messy studios and on digital screens. She has showcased her work in the COMO Museum of Art, Lahore Digital Festival (LDF), Zahoor Ul Ikhlaq Gallery, LAKIR Gallery, OSCH (Our Shared Cultural Heritage): Crafting histories Lahore & Glasgow Project & in various galleries in Lahore.