Pakistani artist Khalil Chishtee to debut in India

In his debut solo show in India titled "Between The Lines", Pakistani artist Khalil Chishtee will reflect upon his memories of a traumatic childhood post-Partition and political unjust of the newly-found country. Scheduled to take place from February 11 to 16 at Visual Arts Gallery, India Habitat Centre here, the show will include 10 metal works created using Urdu calligraphy and two works on paper.

The show is being presented by Ashna Singh of Studio Art gallery, who said that Chishtee transforms the political turmoil, chaos of the past along with the personal conceptual struggles into aesthetically compelling visual experiences. "Chishtee intends his art for transformation rather than decoration, diversion or indoctrination. In his view, art means to serve for cultivating knowledge of how to be in the world, for going through life. And it can be effective for developing a deeper understanding of your own experiences," said Singh.

Chishtee,­ a figurative sculptor from Lahore, was haunted by the horrifying stories of his parent's migration, which left him with discomfort to even look at pictures or read any literature from the Partition era. In his politically-driven pieces displaying exotic calligraphy, he will be exhibiting an artful twist of the irony that the partition was.