ISLAMABAD, Sept 19: Alfredo Leoni, the Ambassador of Brazil, on Thursday inaugurated an exhibition of photo-prints of two internationally acclaimed artists, Lali Khalid and Shalale Jamil.

Entitled ‘Who Am I to Blow against the Wind’, the exhibit was displayed at the Satrang Gallery, Serena Hotel. Unfortunately neither artist was able to attend the opening.

The photography pieces were personal, with varied snapshots and glimpses into the artists’ familial life. A collection of memories, they were images which seemed and unimportant to a stranger or an observer. However, for the artists, these images have their own archive of memories to sift through.

Zahra Khalid, a curator at Satrang, wrote, “These ordinary photographs exist in the albums of every family and considered special but intensely personal.

They also exist in the album of one’s mind, formed by the constant bits of information and images that are carefully stored. They may be the ordinary amongst masterpieces and therefore easily overlooked.”

Asma Rashid Khan, Director of the Gallery, expressed her delight at showcasing the works of the renowned artists at Satrang Gallery. She said the gallery would continue its efforts to nurture and celebrate contemporary Pakistani art in all its forms –miniatures, painting, sculpture, printmaking and photography.

Both artists are educated and had not drifted into arts. Instead, they had studied it before gaining their current acclaim in the field of photography.

Mehreen Khalid (Lali) was introduced to photography at a very young age by her father. She has been taking pictures ever since. Her work wanders between themes in landscape, abstraction and documentary photography.

She earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts from The National College of Arts in Lahore, and her Masters was from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn.

Lali’s work has been shown in many galleries throughout Pakistan as well as in the US. Reviews of her work have appeared in local and international newspapers and she currently lives in the United States.

Similarly, Shalale Jamil has exhibited and curated work in Pakistan, the United States and the UK. She has served as faculty at the National College of Arts and at The Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture. Her work is in several private collections including the Arts Council in Pakistan and the Devi Art Foundation in India.

Using photography, film, video, installation and elements of performance, she investigates perception through her sometimes poetic but terribly straightforward work. The artist currently lives and works in Karachi.