It is always exciting to meet up with artists whom one has known from their early, challenging days of struggle and observe their success in their lives and vocations. Two such artists, Asad Hussain and Farooq Mustafa, recently exhibited their work together at Canvas Gallery, Karachi, a show curated by fellow artist Munawar Ali Syed.

Mustafa is a painter of places and experiences that are absorbed in his imagination and metamorphosed into remembered impressions. He hails from Sindh and began his art education in Hyderabad, before taking admission to the National College of Arts, Lahore. He graduated with Honours from the NCA in 1999, and went on to do postgraduate research studies at the Tsukuba University, Tokyo. He completed a certificate course in Japanese from Mito International Language School, and is currently a successful lecturer, art teacher and exhibiting artist in Japan, though he retains his links with his homeland.

In Mustafa’s work he suggests that existence consists of successive moments in particular places. Painting with mixed media on large canvases, he narrates the story of his journey. One discovers references to Sindh, the historic sites of Lahore, and streams and flowers worked in the style of miniature art. In several paintings the artist has splashed with force some large, colourful areas of paint on the composition. Gazing at the painting from a distance the abstract expressionism takes on the shape of a giant, textured moon observing the world with its disturbed happenings.

Space is often ambiguous in the artist’s work. There are subtle suggestions of transience, lost dreams in the outlines of female forms. Distant mountains, skies and shining areas of lotus flowers on water transcend the threat of gun toting figures and explosions of paint. Deliberate variations of textures and ambiguous shapes evoke the thought of time passing. The artist juxtaposes familiarity and strangeness, recalling moments in particular places with the dynamics of recall.

To pursue his love of art, Hussain came to Karachi in 1999, from a rural area in the Punjab. Predominantly a sculptor, he took admission at the Karachi School of Art, where his work soon attracted attention. In exhibition, his work was witty, created from found objects and junk material. To fund his education he worked at a number of odd jobs, and after obtaining his diploma he became a set designer while continuing to experiment and expand his discipline with the use of diverse media.

Hussain’s recent figurative pieces reveal a personal vision merging fantasy with emotional insight. He creates forms consisting of silver vinyl, felt and foam. A lamb—symbol of innocence, is a recurring form in his work, seen here with the bust of a man identified by his cap. Among the wall-based pieces are a four panelled reflective metal pieces, these are a setting for animals from different materials.

The work is to be examined closely to appreciate the beaded effects worked on the metal. Referring to his work involvement, Hussain shows a series of mixed media pieces worked on CD covers. His contention is that by acts of injustice, cruelty and greed, mankind has unleashed the animal within. The theme is continued by the presence of an armchair, covered in tiny replicas of silver vinyl animals. On the seat an arrangement of herbs appear to be growing, food for man or beast.