Of the many younger artists who have burst on to Pakistan’s artistic scene in recent times, Onaiz Taji is one whose work tends to stand out.

Unlike most of his contemporaries, who rely heavily on vibrant colour schemes and striking, often upsetting, images to grab the viewer’s attention, Taji instead chooses to opt for more muted tones.

From afar, his paintings look mundane, but a closer inspection reveals the depth of his artistic vision and the complex themes he is grappling with. His exhibition two years ago titled ‘Unsaid, Unheard’ was an example of this. He has now further refined that ethos which underpinned his display in 2021.

Taji’s latest exhibition, currently being held at the Sanat Gallery, Karachi, carries on in a similar vein. Titled, ‘Afraad Ke Haathon Mein Hai Aqwaam Ki Taqdeer’ [The fate of the masses lies in the hands of the people], Taji’s latest work is extremely intricate and forces viewers to come up close to his opaque watercolour renderings in order to fully grasp their meaning.

A lot of his pieces depict swarms of people striking different poses, almost as if they are gathered for some sort of demonstration or protest. His figures sometimes look like a horde of doodles, but not in a pejorative way. It is clear that the different gatherings of people depicted in his work are speaking to the need for collective action and how individuals must set aside their differences if they wish to come together to achieve something.

Onaiz Taji’s artwork rewards those viewers who are patient enough to closely engage with it

After graduating in 2016 from the National College of Arts (NCA), Lahore, Taji focused his artistic endeavours on the Indo-Persian miniature technique. He was particularly fixated by the qalam or the line-work, thus prompting him to explore various techniques with his brush and experimentation with his strokes and control. The line is important in his work because it comes across as the defining characteristic of the people in his pieces.

The chaotic nature of gatherings that Taji gives his viewers a glimpse of demonstrate his disciplined usage of lines and avoidance of creating paintings which scream out for attention.

Instead, his artwork simply reveals layers and hidden surprises for those who are patient enough to stop by his paintings and critically engage with them.

It is evident from his work that Taji is interested in dealing with both the concept of individuals and groups, and how one informs the other. While his images of these crowds appear to behave like one large organism when viewed from afar, the individuals that inhabit these paintings manage to maintain their uniqueness when seen up close.

Hence, their placement impacts the feel of every artwork. Such details reveal what happens when there is a flurry of activity and how individual intent is shaped by group behaviour and tendencies.

Taji, who received the 2018 Sovereign Art Foundation Hong Kong Public Vote Prize, has laid down his distinctive marker with this exhibition.

While all artworks should ideally be seen in person in order to fully understand their impact, Taji’s paintings, in particular, are simply not done justice when viewed online or seen in print. Rather than being quickly consumed, his intricate nuances, subtle characterisations and rich tapestries need to be savoured and relished like a fine meal.

‘Afraad Ke Haathon Mein Hai Aqwaam Ki Taqdeer’ is on display at Sanat Gallery in Karachi from June 13-22, 2023.

The writer is an artist and educator

Published in Dawn, EOS, June 18th, 2023