By Hina Kiyani
ISLAMABAD: Islamabad Art Gallery (IAG) organized a condolence reference in memory of Mansoor Rahi, a celebrated artist whose recent passing left an indelible mark on the Pakistani art landscape.
The reference was attended by prominent artists and former Federal Minister for National Heritage and Culture, Jamal Shah, Curator Gallery 6, Arjumand Faisal and prominent artists including Asma Abbasi, Hassan Raza, Munir Ahmad, Farah Mehmood, Amna Shah, Hajra Mansoor wife of Mansoor Rahi (late) with her daughter Saima and Danish Rahi son of Legend Artist (late) Mansoor Rahi.
On the occasion, a number of artists and art lovers shed light on Rahi’s life and career.
To commemorate his legacy and contributions to the world of Art, Chairman of IAG, prominent artist and Former Federal Minister for National Heritage and Culture Jamal Shah said that IAG organized a special event for the remembrance of Mansoor Rahi and to pay tribute to his contributions.
Paying tribute to him, Jamal Shah said that Mansoor Rahi was the leading figurative abstract painter of Pakistan and his teaching and influence have led to the emergence of a larger number of prominent artists than any other teacher artist.
Jamal Shah said that cultural departments like PNCA and Culture Division should have taken the lead to organize a tribute to legendary artist Mansoor Rah.
“I feel my moral duty as an artist to take this initiative which was thankfully attended by a large group of people today”, he said. Hajra Mansoor spoke about over five decades of her life with Mansoor Rahi and his contributions.
She was very sad about the way his work was taken away by their son without his and her consent. She said that all the work was supposed to be displayed in Rahi Museum which was the biggest wish of Rahi.
The participants of reference unanimously decided to constitute a committee for resolving the issues related to Mansoor Rahi missing paintings and the museum. It was also decided that the committee would be led by Jamal Shah comprised of prominent artists, curators and art collectors. Hajra Mansoor proposed that a full-fledged Mansoor Rahi Museum should be established.
The participants highly praised the idea of establishing a museum at his residence with the support of government and artist fraternity.
