Imran Qureshi

Imran Qureshi was born in 1972 in Hyderabad, Pakistan, and currently lives and works in Lahore. His artwork creates a dialogue between meticulously crafted painting and more abstract forms, often incorporating figurative elements drawn from reality. These figures evoke the gestures and attire associated with the wars and violence that people endure and suffer from. His primary sources of inspiration stem from his keen attention to the socio-political conditions of his country, which has faced numerous challenges since the adoption of its Constitution in 1956, including military dictatorship, the Indo-Pakistani War, and the expansion of Islamic law across the region. As a result, his works can be interpreted as visual commentary on the historical and contemporary narratives of modern Pakistan.

Between 1994 and 1996, Qureshi began to explore the genre of miniature painting in a more formal sense, utilizing imagery from historical miniatures and recontextualizing them for a contemporary audience. The techniques he learned from his mentor, Bashir Ahmed, during his college years were pivotal in his artistic development, even if Qureshi initially struggled to align this style with his own artistic sensibility. His mentor, who was one of the last miniature painters of the Patiala court, once told him, “I can distinguish fat from meat. You have talent and should continue your path in the miniature department.” Encouraged, Qureshi pursued his studies and came to realize that miniature painting had become an integral part of his artistic identity.

From 1998 onward, his painting evolved to become more open and expressive on the surface, culminating in large-scale, site-specific works and wall installations. In these pieces, the impact and significance of the figurative elements became more pronounced, eventually leading to the incorporation of blood-red marks, which he recently combined with images and imprints of his own body. Qureshi seeks to create a dialogue between life and death, often represented through foliage imagery, as seen in his work Midnight Garden, part of the Iannaccone Collection. This phase also includes the two works titled This Leprous Brightness from 2010, where he uses bright scarlet footprints as symbols of struggle, war, and loss. Emerging from the footprints and splashes of color are typical floral motifs, suggesting "germs of hope." His footprints emphasize his presence within the artwork, embodying the notion of creation by man and producing "forms...mixed with the color of blood stemming from the brutality of violence," as Qureshi explains. Yet, they simultaneously symbolize a dialogue with life and the possibility of new beginnings.

Today, Qureshi is not only an internationally acclaimed artist but also continues to teach miniature painting at the National College of Arts in Lahore, a technique that has deeply influenced his life as both a man and an artist.