ISLAMABAD: A number of graduate students from Fatima Jinnah Women University (FJWU) on Saturday showcased their exquisite artwork with diverse themes using multiple art forms here at a local hotel.
The one-day art exhibition titled ‘Colours of Creativity’ comprised an exclusive 50 paintings by four young graduates of FJWU including: calligraphy by Afrah Fiaz and Rafia Ahmed Usmani, sculpture by Dilawaiz Khan, and miniature paintings by Bushra Saadat.

Calligraphy or the art of beautiful handwriting has fascinated people of the world cultures through the ages. It also acquired the status of spiritual expression for many. For the Buddhists, it is a vehicle to express devotion to god, the Christians illuminated pages of Bible in the Middle Ages and the Muslims took it to great heights through innumerable variations and styles for ornamentation of buildings, tombstones, and to illuminate the Quran and literary works. Afrah Fiaz and Rafia Ahmed drew inspiration from the classical masterpieces and gave new meaning to the art of calligraphy with ‘contemporary art to modern art’- that makes their work unique in all sense.

Both youngsters use Quranic words and phrases that are readable or have literal relevance; even so, the presence of such elements is for the purpose of visual synthesis rather than literal meaning.

The artists work though drawn from the art of linear writing and historical forms, is an inventive style which expresses new possibilities and potentialities of using Urdu letters or lettering as the subject to compose the space – their painting using different ‘rasmul Khatt and ‘Khatt-e-Nastaleeq’ and ‘Kufi’ in particular.

Talking to Daily Times, Afrah Fiaz and Rafia Ahmed said that calligraphy has a very special place in Islam because it is strongly bound up with the Quranic revelation in two ways. Firstly, Allah’s word in the form of the Quran represents unique evidence of the divine revelation, which was actually conveyed orally to Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him), but was then recorded in writing by his companions and circulated. Secondly, this revelation is described in the Quran as an “elegantly proportioned script” which is preserved with Allah on “spotless sheets of paper” and which is beautiful and unsurpassable. Their work is also in relevance to Holy Month of Rabiul Awwal- a month in which the Holy Prophet (pbuh) was born.

Another striking collection displayed in the exhibition was from Dilawaiz Khan who made sculptures in Namda. “Namda is basically a Kashmiri Rug and I have used that in manufacturing of all my works,” Dilawaiz said adding this work is gaining popularity in Pakistan and I wan to promote this art not only in Pakistan but abroad.

Dilawaiz in her collection of eight pieces artistically used Namda in developing her style wonderfully well. “This work is exclusive as it is the part of my final thesis,” she said.

Bushra Saadat’s work is a remarkable amalgam of skills and aesthetics, the incorporations of the traditional technique of miniature painting into a contemporary imagery, the presentation of seriously perceived and artistically executed ideas, is just a hint of what the exhibition of miniature paintings, has to offer to the art lovers.

The work by Bushra, focuses on the existing insecurity and vulnerability of modern age. “The hand I use in this painting symbolises ‘Hope’- as we are optimistic that this world would emerge into a peaceful settlement, and that is why the title of my painting is also ‘Hope’ and the hand in engaged in efforts to make this world a better place,” Bushra said. a
Her other miniature art pieces also highlight lack of the most needed higher sense of responsibility especially related to the position of power, the criticism, feelings to aware the art lovers in a very artistic way.Daily time