ARTFIEND: The Perilous World Of An Artist By Marjorie Husain

Entering the gallery exhibiting Tassaduq Sohail’s latest work titled ‘Peril in paradise’, was a stunning experience where one was greeted by brilliant sequences of colour exploding across canvases in glorious profusion.

There were a number of artists in attendance at the ArtScene Gallery, Karachi, and this is always a sign of respect and admiration. Though in the early years, painters turned out to support each other during exhibitions, now-a-days one finds few in attendance at another’s show. Exceptions are there as in the case of Naqsh, Gulgee and others of their ilk, and now firmly established as an ‘old master,’ Sohail, whose persona and viewpoint appear revitalised.

Explaining the change of mood in the paintings, Sohail attributes it to the overwhelming appreciation of his work shown by prestigious auctions houses and their clients. He describes the result of his success claiming, “Everybody loves me,” with characteristic humour. “Visitors are frequent, commissions are constant, and the phone rings all the time.”

Sohail began his career in the sixties as “a starving artist in a strange land.” Initially, he declares, he painted best when he was miserable, “surviving on odd jobs rather than exhibiting my work in galleries.” (His first claim to fame however was as an Urdu short story writer.) Though his earlier painting depict a disturbing, esoteric scenario, in company as in his writing, his rare wit and quirky humour often stretch the credulity of his audience.....